Mon Jul 07 21:15:00 UTC 2025: Here’s a summary of the text and a news article based on it:
**Summary:**
The Calcutta High Court has ordered the West Bengal government to exclude “tainted” candidates (those who gained positions through corruption) from the ongoing West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC) recruitment process. This directive follows a Supreme Court order that scrapped the 2016 SLST recruitment panel due to widespread irregularities, annulling over 25,000 teacher appointments. The fresh recruitment process aims to fill over 44,000 posts and must be completed by the end of 2025, as mandated by the Supreme Court. While the government argued that the Supreme Court didn’t explicitly bar “tainted” candidates from reapplying, the High Court emphasized the need to exclude them, upholding the spirit of the Supreme Court’s judgment. Teacher representatives and lawyers for the petitioners expressed concerns that the state government and WBSSC were still trying to accommodate tainted candidates, but the court has rejected those attempts.
**News Article:**
**Calcutta High Court Orders Exclusion of ‘Tainted’ Candidates from West Bengal Teacher Recruitment**
**KOLKATA – July 8, 2025** – The Calcutta High Court has delivered a significant blow to corruption in West Bengal’s education system, directing the state government to exclude “tainted” candidates from the current recruitment drive by the West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC). The order, issued on Monday, July 7, 2025, mandates the rejection of applications from individuals suspected of securing previous appointments through fraudulent means.
This decision follows a Supreme Court ruling in April, which nullified the entire 2016 State Level Selection Test (SLST) recruitment panel, impacting over 25,000 teaching positions and Group C & D staff. The Supreme Court cited widespread irregularities as the reason for the annulment.
Justice Saugata Bhattacharya emphasized the need for a clean and transparent recruitment process, stating that any “tainted or identified ineligible” candidates should be barred from participating.
The WBSSC is now tasked with completing the fresh selection process for over 44,000 positions by December 31, 2025, a deadline set by the Supreme Court.
Senior Advocate Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya, representing the petitioners, asserted that the Supreme Court’s original ruling effectively disqualified those involved in corruption. The Supreme Court made exceptions for candidates who were disabled or who were not specifically tainted by the investigation.
Despite the Court’s directives, concerns remain that the state government and WBSSC are attempting to accommodate candidates implicated in the previous scandal. Representatives of teachers who lost their jobs due to the scandal have expressed outrage at this alleged attempt, but the court has stood firm.
“It is clear that both the state government and the SSC are still hell-bent on standing with the tainted teachers who secured appointments by unfair means. But the court has rejected their argument,” said Firdaus Shamim, an advocate for the petitioners.
This High Court order marks a crucial step toward restoring integrity to the teacher recruitment process in West Bengal and ensuring that only qualified and ethically sound individuals are entrusted with the education of the state’s children.
First Piper 