In a massive loss of face to the Mamata Banerjee government in West Bengal, the Supreme Court has upheld the Calcutta High Court order, cancelling the appointment of more than 25,000 teachers and non-teaching staff under the West Bengal School Service Commission. The Supreme Court said the entire selection process is “vitiated by manipulation and fraud” and its credibility and legitimacy “denuded”.
The bench of Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna and Justice PV Sanjay Kumar said that it saw no reason to interfere with the High Court order. The court said the appointments resulted from cheating and are thus fraudulent.
The court asked the state government to complete a fresh selection process within three months. Those who clear this fresh process would not be required to return the salary they drew since their appointment in 2016. But the ones who don’t must pay back. The court has given relaxation to persons with disabilities and said they may continue in their present posting.