In a much-needed relief to 32,000 primary teachers in West Bengal, the Calcutta High Court on Wednesday set aside a single bench order that cancelled their appointment in the TET-recruitment scam case.
Setting aside the 2023 decision by Justice Abhijit Gangopadhyay, who is currently a BJP MP, the devision bench of Justices Tapabrata Chakraborty and Reetobroto Kumar Mitra said a group of unsuccessful candidates cannot be allowed to damage the entire system.
The bench said there must have been a “possibility of systemic malice” but assessment of data does not point to the same.
Recognising the adverse impact on terminated teachers, the court said, “A job taken away after 9 years of service would cause insurmountable difficulty.”
In 2023, Justice Gangopadhyay had cancelled the appointments of 32,000 teachers on grounds that aptitude test had not been conducted for the candidates and that the officials sold the jobs to the candidates.
However, the devision bench said that the court is not expected to indulge in roving inquiry to rule out all explanations.
“There is a difference between a proven case of mass cheating and unproven charges of corruption. When services are terminated on grounds of aiding corruption, the court must satisfy itself of its stand. Irregularities pertain to TET 2014,” held the bench.
Truth has triumphed, says Bengal Education Minister
West Bengal Education Minister Bratya Basu hailed the verdict, saying “truth has triumphed”.
“The jobs of 32,000 primary school teachers remain fully secure. My best wishes to the teachers. Truth has triumphed,” the minister said.