West Bengal school recruitment scam : HC directs removal WBBPE chairperson 

Kolkata

The Calcutta High Court on Monday directed the removal of chairperson of West Bengal Board of Primary Education ( WBBPE) Manik Bhattacharya. The Court also directed that Mr. Bhattacharya will appeal before the Court on Tuesday.

 Justice Abhijit Gangopadhyay said that WBBPE secretary Ratna Chakraborty Bagchi can function as the chairperson of WBBPE till the State government appoints a new chairman. The Court was adjudicating a matter of appointment of about 269 teachers State run schools over allegations that they did not pass the eligibility test. The petitioner had approached the Court alleging that the 269 candidates were given an additional one number (marks) for a wrong question out of around 23 lakh aspirants in the Teachers’ Eligibility Test (TET) in 2014.

 Last week the Court had sought some documents from the WBBPE relating to the process of allocating additional one mark to a section of examinees. The counsels appearing for petitioners pointed out the documents though several years old appear to be new. The Court then held the chairperson of WBBPE responsible for it and said he cannot continue in the past.

 Justice Gangopadhyay had earlier this month directed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to probe appointments of 269 primary school teachers in State run primary schools. “In view of the illegality committed in respect of the second panel (termed as Additional Panel, by the Secretary of the Board), which is wholly illegal and giving illegal appointment to 269 candidates by a queer method unknown to law, I direct the Central Bureau of Investigation (‘CBI’, for short) to start investigation by registering a case immediately against the Board,” the order had stated. 

 Justice Gangopadhyay had directed CBI to probe appointments of teaching and non teaching staff in State run schools in at least eight cases starting November 2021. The Court has also set up an special investigation team (SIT) of the CBI to look into cases of irregularities in recruitment of teaching and non-teaching staff in West Bengal government sponsored and aided secondary schools.