In a significant relief for untainted Assistant Teachers in West Bengal, the Supreme Court of India on Thursday, April 17, allowed them to continue in service until new appointments are made, despite the cancellation of their recruitment owing to irregularities in the 2016 State Level Selection Test (SLST).

A bench comprising Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Sanjay Kumar observed that the decision was taken in the interest of students, ensuring their education is not disrupted due to administrative failures.

However, the court made it clear that this relief would not be extended to teaching and non-teaching staff under Groups C and D, noting a larger number of tainted candidates in those categories.

The court directed the West Bengal government and the West Bengal School Service Commission to advertise fresh Assistant Teacher vacancies by May 31, 2025, and to complete the recruitment process by December 31, 2025.

Earlier, on April 3, the Supreme Court had upheld the Calcutta High Court’s order dated April 22, 2024, which annulled the appointment of 23,123 teaching and non-teaching staff recruited through the SLST-2016. The apex court concluded that the selection process was tainted by "manipulation and fraud," leaving it no option but to cancel the entire recruitment.

"We uphold the impugned judgment cancelling the entire selection process," the court had stated, directing all tainted candidates to refund the salaries or benefits received during their tenure.

For untainted candidates previously employed with state departments or autonomous bodies, the court permitted reapplication to their original posts. Though their appointments under SLST-2016 stand annulled, the court mandated that such applications be considered and processed within three months, allowing eligible candidates to resume service.

The top court had earlier reserved its judgment on February 12, 2025, after hearing pleas against the Calcutta High Court's sweeping order. The West Bengal government had challenged the decision, particularly objecting to the direction for candidates who had submitted blank OMR sheets but still secured appointments to return all remuneration with 12% annual interest within four weeks.

In May 2024, while staying the high court’s order temporarily, the Supreme Court had clarified that protection from removal would continue during the pendency of the case. However, any candidate ultimately found to have been appointed illegally would be required to refund their salaries.

The matter—popularly known as the “cash-for-jobs scam”—saw the arrest of former state education minister Partha Chatterjee and others by the CBI. Massive caches of cash were recovered during the investigation, deepening public outrage.

The Calcutta High Court bench of Justices Debangsu Basak and Md. Shabbar Rashidi had observed that the selection process was so deeply compromised by procedural violations, nepotism, and favouritism that it left the court with no choice but to cancel all appointments across the four categories involved.