Setback to Bengal government, Supreme court upholds dismissal of 25,000 teachers

The Supreme Court has upheld the Calcutta High Court's decision to invalidate the appointments of 25,753 teachers and non-teaching staff at state-run and state-aided schools, which is a significant move regarding the West Bengal recruiting process. The earlier decision was upheld by the apex court's order on April 3, 2025, which stated that the recruitment process was marred by significant irregularities, which resulted in the annulment of these positions.

A bench composed of Justice Sanjay Kumar and Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna came to the conclusion that the recruitment procedure in question had serious flaws. According to the court's ruling, the appointments' integrity had been so severely damaged by recruitment-process manipulations that they could not be upheld.

The justices stressed that the appointments were void since the entire selection process was corrupted and compromised. Following the Supreme Court's reaffirmation of the Calcutta High Court's ruling, the appointed individuals' termination orders will be put into effect. According to the Calcutta High Court, those who were hired outside of the officially announced openings or after the official recruitment date has passed must repay all compensation and perks received, plus 12% interest.