Team Blitz India
THE Supreme Court on May 7 stayed the Calcutta High Court’s order to terminate over 25,000 teaching and non-teaching posts in state-run and state-aided schools of West Bengal. The decision came as a relief to thousands of individuals whose jobs were in jeopardy following the high court’s ruling on April 22 that invalidated the appointment of 25,753 teachers and nonteaching staff.
The apex court, however, refused to stay the CBI probe into the alleged school recruitment scam and said it may probe even the members of the state cabinet if needed.
Hearing a series of petitions challenging the HC’s decision, a Bench of Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, however, made it clear that the teachers and non-teaching staff of the state, whose appointments were cancelled by the high court, will have to refund the salaries and other emoluments if it reaches the conclusion that their recruitment was illegal.
“The public job is so scarce…. Nothing remains if the faith of the public goes. This is systemic fraud. Public jobs are extremely scarce today and are looked at for social mobility. What remains in the system if their appointments are also maligned? People will lose faith, how do you countenance this?” the CJI asked the lawyers representing the state government. The Bench said the state government has nothing to show that the data was maintained by its authorities and asked about its availability.
