In a significant development in the ongoing controversy over the SSC recruitment process, the Calcutta High Court on Monday ruled that the new recruitment process must strictly comply with the Supreme Court’s directives with no room for “tainted ineligible” candidates. Justice Saugata Bhattacharya delivered the verdict in response to a case challenging the legality of the School Service Commission’s (SSC) new recruitment notification, issued on May 30, 2025, after the Supreme Court’s landmark cancellation of the 2016 teacher recruitment panel due to massive irregularities.
The High Court made it crystal clear: candidates whose names feature on the list of cancelled jobs or against whom there is credible evidence of corruption must be disqualified outright from participating in the new recruitment drive.
"The tainted and ineligible cannot be given a second chance,” Justice Bhattacharya stated firmly, reiterating that the recruitment must proceed as per the Supreme Court’s final order.
The 2016 SSC recruitment process came under scrutiny following allegations of large-scale corruption. A CBI investigation later confirmed irregularities in the selection of over 26,000 teachers and non-teaching staff, prompting the Supreme Court in April to scrap the entire panel.
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In light of the court’s decision, the West Bengal government and SSC issued a fresh recruitment notification on May 30 this year, citing around 44,000 vacant posts. However, this sparked fresh legal challenges from job aspirants of the 2016 panel, who alleged the new notification violated Supreme Court-mandated norms, including age relaxation and selection rules.
Candidates who had cleared the 2016 exam approached the High Court, arguing that the new notification ignored the selection criteria of 2016 and failed to uphold the Supreme Court’s instruction that only candidates from that cycle be considered. They also contended that age relaxation clauses in the 2025 notification were not in accordance with legal guidelines.
While the High Court allowed the SSC’s May 30 notification to remain valid, it set clear boundaries: The High Court has clearly mentioned in the order that only clean candidates from the 2016 cycle are eligible to apply, no candidate involved in corruption or whose appointment has been cancelled by the court will be allowed to participate, even if they submit applications and the SSC must complete the recruitment process within the time frame fixed by the Supreme Court.
Senior advocate Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya, representing the petitioners, welcomed the verdict. “The state tried to bypass the Supreme Court’s order. The High Court has now reiterated that those proven ineligible cannot be allowed to re-enter through the back door,” he said.
Another counsel, Firdous Shamim, was even more direct. “The government is clearly trying to shield tainted candidates under the garb of a fresh exam. Thankfully, the court saw through this and has issued a clear directive to bar such ineligibles,” he said.
The ruling places added pressure on the West Bengal School Service Commission and the Education Department to adhere to constitutional norms and the apex court’s orders. With the High Court now reinforcing the Supreme Court’s stance, the recruitment process must now be transparent, accountable, and free of corruption.
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