Calcutta high court cancels appointment of 36,000 primary teachers: the due procedure was not followed

• The Calcutta High Court has ordered the cancellation of the appointment of around 36,000 candidates who were untrained at the time of their recruitment as primary teachers in West Bengal. 
• Passing the order, Justice Abhijit Gangopadhay observed that “corruption of this magnitude” was never known in the state of West Bengal. 
• From the gross illegality in the selection procedure it is clear that the board and its officials including its former president conducted the “whole affair like that of a local club”. 
• The court directed that the Board will arrange for a recruitment exercise within three months only for the candidates who participated in the 2016 appointment process. 
• The Justice directed that the recruitment process will be under the same rules and legal procedures under which the 2016 recruitment process was conducted. 
• A total of around 42,500 candidates were selected in the recruitment process, of which around 6,500 were trained candidates. 

The Calcutta High Court has ordered the cancellation of the appointment of around 36,000 candidates who were untrained at the time of their recruitment as primary teachers in West Bengal government-sponsored and -aided schools, as the due procedure was not followed in the appointment process.

Passing the order, Justice Abhijit Gangopadhay observed that “corruption of this magnitude” was never known in the state of West Bengal. From the gross illegality in the selection procedure in the recruitment exercise of 2016 conducted by the West Bengal Board of Primary Education, it is clear that the board and its officials including its former president Manik Bhattacharya, conducted the “whole affair like that of a local club”. Manik Bhattacharya is now in custody after his arrest by the Enforcement Directorate for the alleged transaction of huge money in the recruitment procedure.

The court directed that the West Bengal Board of Primary Education will arrange for a recruitment exercise within three months only for the candidates who participated in the 2016 appointment process. Candidates who have obtained training qualifications in the meantime will also be included in the exercise. The court directed that in the exercise, both the interview and aptitude test of all examinees will be taken and the whole interview process has to be videographed carefully and preserved. The Justice directed that the recruitment process will be under the same rules and legal procedures under which the 2016 recruitment process was conducted. The court said that no new or any other candidate will be allowed to take part in the recruitment exercise.

The court directed that the services of the presently employed candidates who will not succeed in the selection process will be “terminated.” He stated that if any candidate who appeared in the 2016 recruitment process has crossed the age bar in the meantime or will cross the age bar within three months from the date, will be allowed to take part in the recruitment exercise.

A total of around 42,500 candidates were selected in the recruitment process, of which around 6,500 were trained candidates. The recruitment process was held by the West Bengal Board of Primary Education which was to be held in accordance with West Bengal Board of Primary School Teachers Recruitment Rules 2016, the court noted.

( With inputs from agencies)