Major Blow to Bengal Govt: Supreme Court Upholds Dismissal of 25,000 Teachers

The Supreme Court of India has upheld the Calcutta High Court's direction to cancel the appointments of 25,753 teachers and non-teaching staff in state-sponsored and state-aided schools in West Bengal. This order dated April 3, 2025, dictates that the recruitment process held by the West Bengal School Service Commission (SSC) between 2016 was marred by blatant irregularities such as tampering with OMR sheets and rank-jumping.

The court held the selection process to be "vitiated and tainted by fraud," and all appointments were held to be null and void. Despite that, the court provided relief by holding that the aggrieved would not be liable to refund back salaries or benefits accrued. 

However, those appointed beyond the stipulated vacancies or beyond the cut-off date have to refund their compensation with interest.

The Supreme Court directed the West Bengal government to hold a new selection process within three months with relaxation for untainted candidates. The move is a significant setback for the Mamata Banerjee government, which had approached court to challenge the High Court order. 

The continuation of the current CBI investigation into charges of recruitment irregularities was also permitted.