In a significant verdict, the Calcutta High Court on Monday nullified all appointments of teaching and non-teaching staff made through the 2016 state-level test in government-sponsored and aided secondary and higher secondary schools in West Bengal. The division bench comprising Justice Debangsu Basak and Justice Md Shabbar Rashidi declared the appointments “null and void,” directing the board to conduct a fresh recruitment process. This ruling effectively annuls 25,753 jobs.
Furthermore, the court mandated that those appointed must repay their salaries within four weeks. The appointments stemmed from the 2016 State-Level Selection Test (SLST), which saw over 23 lakh candidates vying for 24,640 vacant posts.
In a further development, the bench instructed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to delve deeper into the appointment process and furnish a report within three months. Additionally, as reported by Anandabazaar Partrika, the court ordered authorities to upload all answer sheets from the SSC recruitment test onto their website to uphold transparency standards.
The court’s decision is being perceived as a setback for the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) government, especially amidst the ongoing election season. Notably, the CBI has already detained former state education minister and TMC leader Partha Chatterjee, along with several party functionaries associated with the West Bengal School Service Commission (SSC) during the period of the alleged scam.
