State moves Supreme Court for review of Apr 3 SSC verdict
Times of India | 5 May 2025
123 Kolkata: The Bengal govt and the SSC filed a review petition in the Supreme Court urging modifications to its April 3 judgment, which scrapped the entire 2016 recruitment panel in state-aided schools and terminated 25,752 appointees. The petition is likely to be mentioned for hearing on May 8 before the Supreme Court.
A senior state official said, "A review petition has been filed." SSC chairperson, Siddhartha Majumdar, did not comment.
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According to sources, both the Bengal govt and the SSC seek in their petition that the apex court distinguishes between the ‘tainted' and the ‘untainted' based on the submissions made by the CBI and SSC in both the Calcutta High Court and the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court, after their April 3 judgment, modified it once, allowing only teachers who are "not specifically tainted" to continue working until Dec 31.
The Bengal govt has been given a July timeline to roll out the new recruitment process. Both the Bengal govt and the SSC, in their review petition, have also sought certain clarifications on the modalities and the eligibility of the new recruitment process, sources said. The review petition comes after CM Mamata Banerjee assured the protesting teachers and school staffers that the state would move to the Supreme Court.
Speaking at a public meeting in West Midnapore's Goaltore on April 22, CM Banerjee said, "If need be, we will go for a review again. Have that faith in us. Do not trust those who took away your jobs. Have faith in those who gave it back and are still trying to secure your future," adding, "We need to abide by the law and adhere to legal protocols. But remember, the law, as it stands, opens many paths. Hence, there is no reason for you to worry. I never want unemployment to rise in my state."
The petition on Sunday evoked mixed reactions. A section backed it, while others said they were upset that the ‘review petition' was filed without consulting them. Meheboob Mondal, who is among those coordinating with the state on behalf of the unemployed teachers, said, "The govt did not discuss the draft of the review petition with us. Moreover, we see meetings being held with those who are ‘unqualified'. This clearly shows that the govt is betraying our cause."
Satyajit Dhar, an unemployed Group C educational staffer, said, "Our main demand is for the govt to restore our jobs through a review petition in the Supreme Court. We are qualified and want to return to work." Biplab Bibar, a member of the ‘United Teaching and Non-Teaching Forum 2016', said, "This is our only option at the moment."