After Supreme Court's Warning, West Bengal SSC Undertakes To Bar Tainted Candidates From Fresh Exams For Teacher Selection

After a stern warning by the Supreme Court, the West Bengal School Service Commission gave an undertaking that no candidate, who has been specifically found to be tainted by the Court's earlier judgment in relation to the 'cash-for-jobs' scam in the 2016 recruitment, will be allowed to appear in the fresh recruitment exams scheduled to take place in September.

A bench comprising Justice PV Sanjay Kumar and Justice Satish Chandra Sharma recorded the undertaking given by the WBSSC in its order passed on August 29. On the previous day, the Commission had undertaken to publish the list of tainted candidates within seven days, as follows :

"Learned senior counsel appearing for the WBCSSC states, on instructions, that the list of tainted candidates who were selected, whose selection has been set aside by the High Court and confirmed by this Court, would be placed in the public domain, that is, on the website of the WBCSSC within seven days."

The tests meant for the selection of teachers for classes IX and X (secondary) as well as classes XI and XII (higher secondary) are scheduled to be held on 07.09.2025 and 14.09.2025, respectively.  

'You will face the music if tainted candidates are selected again' : Court warns

During the hearing on August 29, the bench warned the State of serious consequences if any tainted candidate was found to be selected.

"If any tainted candidate is shown to have been selected again, you (State) will face the music. You have the list of tainted candidates given by the CBI. If you are allowing any of those candidates to appear again, you take it from us, we will come down on you like a ton of bricks," Justice Sanjay Kumar told Senior Advocate Kalyan Banerjee, appearing for the WBSCC.

Justice Kumar asked why the SSC filed an application before the High Court seeking permission to allow tainted candidates to appear. "Why would you even go before the High Court and make such a prayer? Why would you do that? Once they already have been identified as tainted candidates, you go before the High Court, file an application seeking to allow them to write the exam? There is no justification for that, unless some Minister wants some candidate to be selected," Justice Kumar observed.

Justice Kumar said that the Court is keeping a "close watch" on the process and warned, "Please be mindful, that we will definitely interfere if you do this kind of tinkering again. You already ruined the lives of people. People are out on roads. We are being blamed for your mess. Is that fair? The Government is supposed to be a model citizen and this is what you do. The selection process is tainted because some Minister wants his candidate to be there. God knows what else went on. But you are responsible for the entire process. The Board, the Service Commission and the State, all are responsible," Justice Kumar warned.

After this outburst from the Court, the Commission gave a specific undertaking that no tainted candidate will be allowed to participate. The bench recorded the undertaking as follows :

"...we also take on record the statement of the learned senior counsel appearing for the Commission that none of the tainted candidates would be permitted to appear in the selection tests scheduled to held on 07.09.2025 and 14.09.2025. He further states that if any tainted candidate slips through the net and manages to appear for the test(s), the notice dated 25.08.2025 issued by the Commission stating that eligibility/ineligibility of candidates would be examined in the post-examination stage would come to the aid of the Commission in weeding out such tainted candidates, who are wholly ineligible in terms of the judgment passed by this Court in The State of West Bengal & Ors. vs. Baishakhi Bhattacharyya (Chatterjee).

The statements made by the learned senior counsel appearing for the Commission are taken on record and shall be binding on it."

The Court also gave liberty to the petitioners to write a letter to the Commission or its Advocate-on-Record if they come to know of any tainted candidate who managed to secure an Admit Card for the selection tests.

The Court was considering petitions filed against the Calcutta High Court's order holding that degree or diploma from a Teachers' Training Institution recognized by the RCI cannot be treated as requisite eligibility for the selection. The petition has been tagged along with connected matter Bibek Paria & Ors. v. The State of West Bengal & Ors Diary No. 46049/2025 and will be considered next on October 31, 2025.

In April, the Supreme Court, in State of West Bengal v. Baishakhi Bhattacharyya case,affirmed the Calcutta High Court's judgment invalidating nearly 25000 teaching and non-teaching staff appointments made by the West Bengal School Selection Commission (SSC) in 2016.

The Court approved the finding of the High Court that the selection process was vitiated by fraud and was tainted beyond repair. The Court upheld the High Court's judgment cancelling the appointments en-block.

However, the Court granted a limited relief to untainted candidates by allowing them to participate in future selection process. Recently, the Court dismissed the review petitions filed by the State against the judgment, observing that the cancellation was justified as the "entire selection process was compromised."

Case : Rehana Begum and others v The State of West Bengal and others |Diary No. 47466/2025

Click here to read the order