Calcutta High Court Directs WBSSC to Submit Fresh, Detailed List of 1,806 Tainted Candidates
The Calcutta High Court has ordered the West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC) to file a new and comprehensive report containing complete details of 1,806 tainted candidates. These individuals were part of a larger group of 25,753 candidates whose school appointments were annulled by the Supreme Court in April 2025 following the detection of irregularities in the recruitment process.
Justice Amrita Sinha, presiding over the matter, noted that the report previously submitted by the Commission lacked sufficient information for the accurate identification of these candidates. The Court observed that the existing list failed to include several crucial details necessary for proper verification.
Key Information Missing from the Current List
According to the High Court’s observations, while the list submitted by WBSSC includes basic particulars such as roll numbers, candidate names, subjects, parents’ names, and dates of birth, it does not specify the category under which each candidate was found to be tainted. The Court emphasised that this is a vital piece of information without which the status of any candidate cannot be clearly ascertained.
Additionally, the list does not indicate the specific school or district where each candidate was appointed under the first School Level Selection Test (SLST) conducted in 2016. This omission further complicates the identification process.
Court’s Concern Over Candidate Identification
In her order, Justice Sinha expressed serious concern that without complete and unambiguous information about the tainted candidates being made public, there is a significant risk that some of them might escape scrutiny and participate in future recruitment drives. The Court reiterated that the purpose of publishing the list is not merely to fulfil a procedural requirement but to ensure clear and unequivocal identification of all tainted individuals.
The Court also reminded all parties of its earlier order dated 19 November 2025, which explicitly stated that the objective behind publishing the list of tainted candidates is to guarantee their unambiguous identification without any confusion or ambiguity.
Commission’s Response and Ongoing Recruitment
During the hearing, the legal counsel representing the West Bengal School Service Commission informed the Court that necessary steps are being taken to publish a revised list with additional and more detailed information about the tainted candidates.
It is worth noting that WBSSC is currently conducting the second School Level Selection Test (SLST) 2025 for fresh recruitment to teaching and non-teaching positions across government and aided schools in West Bengal. The outcome of this case and the publication of a comprehensive list will have significant implications for the ongoing recruitment process.
Background of the Case
The matter traces back to the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the Calcutta High Court’s ruling that declared the appointments of 25,753 candidates to teaching and non-teaching posts as illegal. This decision came after serious irregularities were uncovered in the recruitment process, leading to the cancellation of these appointments. The 1,806 candidates mentioned in the current case are among those whose appointments were invalidated.
The High Court has scheduled the next hearing for 11 February, by which time the Commission is expected to submit the revised and more detailed list. The Court has made it clear that the new list must include all necessary and relevant details to eliminate any possibility of ambiguity regarding the identification of the tainted candidates.
This development marks another significant step in the ongoing legal proceedings surrounding the school service recruitment irregularities in West Bengal, which have been the subject of extensive judicial scrutiny at both the state and national levels.
