In a landmark decision, the Supreme Court on April 3, 2025, upheld the Calcutta High Court’s ruling that canceled the appointments of 25,753 teachers and non-teaching staff in West Bengal’s state-run and state-aided schools. The verdict comes after serious irregularities were found in the recruitment process conducted by the West Bengal School Service Commission (SSC) in 2016.
A bench led by Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Sanjay Kumar stated that manipulations in the selection process had “compromised the integrity” of appointments to such an extent that they could not be legally sustained. The court emphasized that the recruitment was “vitiated and tainted,” leading to the cancellation of all the disputed appointments.
The case revolves around a recruitment drive for 24,640 vacancies, which saw an astonishing 23 lakh applicants. However, irregularities such as tampering with OMR sheets and rank-jumping led to 25,753 appointment letters being issued—exceeding the sanctioned vacancies. These discrepancies were initially flagged by the Calcutta High Court, prompting the legal battle.
Following petitions challenging the high court’s decision—including one from the West Bengal government—the Supreme Court took up the matter in December 2024. After months of hearings, the apex court reserved its judgment on February 10, 2025, and delivered its final ruling on April 3, affirming the High Court’s stance and declaring the recruitment void.
