The West Bengal Government has moved the Division Bench of the Calcutta High Court in the case of providing allowance to the Group C and Group D staff of the School Service Commission (SSC) who lost their jobs following the Supreme Court order of April 3.

A Supreme Court Bench dismissed 25,753 teaching and non-teaching staff employed in state-run and state-aided schools on April 3, upholding a Calcutta High Court order. Following the setback, the Mamata Banerjee government announced an ex gratia of Rs 25,000 for Group C staff and Rs 20,000 for Group D with effect from April 1 until the review case was disposed of in the Supreme Court. The High Court stayed the government’s decision in June.

According to the Government, it has the right to grant allowance for the survival of the employees.

After the announcement of the allowance, a section of job seekers, who were on the waiting list for appointment in School Service Commission in 2016, approached the High Court claiming that they were deprived of their right.

Justice Amrita Sinha of the High Court Single Bench in June stayed the disbursal of monthly stipends announced for sacked Group C and Group D school employees whose appointments were nullified by the Supreme Court earlier this year.

The Supreme Court, while terminating the appointments, cited a “vitiated” recruitment process. On April 17, the court allowed “untainted” teachers to continue until December with full salaries but denied similar relief to non-teaching staff, citing “substantially high” irregularities in their recruitment.

Justice Sinha, during the hearing, said, “The state has decided to give allowances of Rs 25,000 and Rs 20,000. How were these figures determined? Will they get paid for sitting at home? For how long?”

State Advocate General Kishore Dutta had told the court that the stipends had already begun to be disbursed from April 1. Justice Sinha responded, “Why is the state in such a hurry? Certain protocols must be followed.”