The Supreme Court on Thursday affirmed the Calcutta High Court's April 22, 2024 ruling, which annulled appointments in West Bengal's school recruitment process. A bench comprising Chief Justice of India (CJI) Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Sanjay Kumar directed the Trinamool Congress-led state government to initiate a fresh selection process, to be completed within three months.

The apex court deemed the entire recruitment process as flawed due to large-scale fraud and manipulation, making it irreparable. "The legitimacy of the selection process stands eroded. With certain modifications, we uphold the high court's verdict," the CJI stated while delivering the judgment on 127 petitions related to the case.

The Supreme Court ruled that affected employees need not return salaries and benefits received. However, an exception was made for certain disabled employees, allowing them to retain their jobs on humanitarian grounds.

The court scheduled further hearings, including on the West Bengal government’s challenge to the high court’s directive for a CBI probe, for April 4. The detailed judgment is awaited.

The Supreme Court reserved its verdict on the matter on February 10 after hearing arguments on December 19, January 15, and January 27. The case, involving political sensitivities, centers on alleged irregularities in the 2016 recruitment drive conducted by the West Bengal School Service Commission (SSC).

Citing irregularities such as OMR sheet tampering and unauthorized rank changes, the Calcutta High Court had invalidated the appointment of 25,753 teachers and non-teaching staff in state-run and state-aided schools. The apex court had earlier stayed this order on May 7, 2024, but allowed the CBI to proceed with its investigation.

The recruitment process, involving 23 lakh candidates for 24,640 vacancies, led to the issuance of 25,753 appointment letters, exceeding the available posts. The Supreme Court previously termed the case a "systemic fraud."

The high court mandated that appointees exceeding the official vacancies, those recruited post-deadline, and those submitting blank OMR sheets but securing jobs must return all salaries and benefits with 12 per cent interest.

Key accused in the recruitment scam include former West Bengal education minister Partha Chatterjee and Trinamool Congress MLAs Manik Bhattacharya and Jiban Krishna Saha. The CBI continues its probe into their alleged involvement.