BJP hails Supreme Court order on DA arrears as a ‘tight slap’ to state govt.
The Statesman | 17 May 2025
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Friday hailed the Supreme Court’s directive to the West Bengal government to pay 25 per cent of the pending Dearness Allowance (DA) arrears to state employees calling it a ‘tight slap’ to the Mamata Banerjee-led regime.
“The Supreme Court has slapped the Mamata government once again ” BJP IT cell in-charge and Bengal co-observer Amit Malviya wrote on X (formerly Twitter). He accused the state government of delaying justice through “17 shameless adjournments” while splurging “crores on carnivals” and indulging in “mela, khela and appeasement politics.”
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Calling the verdict a “historic win for Bengal’s deprived government employees,” Malviya alleged that the Trinamul Congress leadership had looted the state exchequer leaving little room for genuine welfare. “Had Mamata and her aides not turned Bengal into a corruption laboratory—from SSC scams to cow and coal rackets—employees wouldn’t have had to beg the court for their rightful dues,” he wrote.
The Supreme Court’s order came after a prolonged legal battle following the Calcutta High Court’s May 2022 directive that the state pay DA at central government rates. The apex court taking serious note of the delays instructed the state to clear at least 25% of the arrears within four weeks. The court initially proposed a 50% disbursement but senior advocate and Congress MP Abhishek Manu Singhvi appearing for the West Bengal government argued against it citing financial constraints. Singhvi reportedly told the court that even a 25% payout would cost the state nearly Rs 10,000 crore and could “break its financial backbone.” That argument however found little sympathy among government employees and legal experts. “You can’t cry about a financial crisis when you spend lavishly on festivals,” said a spokesperson from the Sangrami Joutho Mancha, an umbrella body of protesting employees. “The excuse no longer holds water.” Prominent advocate and Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharyya who represented the employees in court said the state now has no option but to comply. “The Supreme Court has made it clear—the money must be paid within four weeks,” he said.
The ruling which reaffirms employee entitlements amid alleged fiscal mismanagement has added fresh momentum to the BJP’s political offensive in West Bengal ahead of the 2026 Assembly elections. Party leaders have reiterated that if elected they will ensure full settlement of all DA arrears and an end to what they term “institutionalized corruption.”