Calcutta HC allows pleas challenging WBSSC teacher recruitment notification

The Hindu

03-06-2025

The Calcutta High Court on Tuesday (June 3, 2025) granted permission to file pleas challenging the West Bengal government's notification on this year's teacher recruitment process. These pleas are expected to be heard by a vacation Bench of the court later this week.
On May 30, the West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC) and the State Education Department issued a notification for the State Level Selection Test (SLST) for the recruitment of assistant teachers for classes 9 to 12 in government-run and government-aided schools. Concurrently, the State government has filed a review petition in the Supreme Court seeking modifications to the top court's April 3 order.
The Supreme Court had cancelled nearly 26,000 teaching and non-teaching appointments made through the 2016 recruitment process, calling it 'vitiated and tainted'. On April 17, the top court directed that fresh recruitment be initiated by May 31 and completed by December 31.
While many among the affected group of sacked teachers have reiterated their demand to be exempted from the new process, a section of waitlisted candidates from the 2016 panel have moved the Calcutta High Court against the 2025 notification itself.
A large section of the protestors and litigants who had earlier challenged the 2016 appointments had claimed that, despite clearing the examination, they were denied jobs due to irregularities in the selection process.
The current petitioners, who identify themselves as among those deprived, have argued that the latest recruitment guidelines violate the Supreme Court's directives. In particular, they have objected to provisions in the notification that appear to favour sacked teachers — such as the allocation of an additional 10 marks for prior teaching experience.
Notably, no such provision existed in the 2016 recruitment. The Supreme Court, in its April 17 order, had clarified: 'We clarify that this order shall not be read as conferring any special right or advantage on the aforesaid teachers, insofar as the fresh recruitment process is concerned.'
Suvojit Das, a teacher whose appointment from the 2016 panel was cancelled but who maintains he was untainted, told The Hindu that the current recruitment notification does not particularly benefit any category of affected candidates, whether sacked or waitlisted.
He claimed that the sacked teachers are unwilling to participate in fresh recruitment. 'In the most unfortunate case where we are forced to partake in recruitments, we should not be made to compete with the entire pool of candidates this year. We should only compete for the number of declared vacancies of 2016 for which we had originally applied,' he said.
'Moreover, in that case, the untainted appointees of 2016 who might not clear the SLST this year should also receive some benefit from the government,' Mr. Das added.
He further argued that a re-evaluation of the 2016 OMR sheets could help distinguish meritorious candidates — whether waitlisted or sacked — from those who were part of the tainted process.
Meanwhile, the Detective Department of the Bidhannagar Police Commissionerate on Tuesday issued summons to two protesting teachers, Amit Ranjan Bhuiyan and Mehebub Mondal, for questioning.