Kolkata: The Calcutta High Court has made a significant decision regarding the recruitment of teaching and non-teaching staff in government-sponsored and government-aided schools. The court has cancelled the recruitment of 24,000 individuals, thereby dismissing the entire 2016 teacher recruitment panel formed by the West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC).
During the hearing, a division bench comprising Justices Debangshu Basak and Md. Shabbar Rashidi stated that those who were unlawfully recruited must return their salaries within four weeks. Additionally, the bench has ordered a reevaluation of 23 lakh OMR sheets that were used in the recruitment process, and has directed the WBSSC to initiate a new recruitment process.
Several notable individuals, including former state education minister Partha Chatterjee, former primary education board president and Trinamool MLA Manik Bhattacharya, and youth leader Kuntal Ghosh, have been arrested in connection with the scam.
Former Calcutta High Court judge Abhijit Ganguly, now a BJP candidate in the Lok Sabha elections, had previously ordered a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the alleged irregularities in the recruitment process.
In response to the court’s decision, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has called the order “illegal” and has announced plans to challenge it in a higher court. At an election rally in Raiganj, Mamata expressed concern for the affected individuals, stating, “26,000 (24,000) people means 1.5 families. Can anyone return the salary of all these years in just four weeks!”
She further declared her readiness to face any consequences for speaking against the verdict, stating, “I am ready for any defamation case or even going to jail. I will accept punishment for the sake of people.”
