The West Bengal’s new government has initiated a decisive administrative drive to act against “ineligible” candidates who had secured jobs in connection with the 2016 SSC recruitment corruption case. In compliance with judicial directives, the Education Department has begun the process of recovering salaries from those found to have obtained appointments through illegal means.
The move follows clear instructions from the Calcutta High Court and the Supreme Court of India, both of which ruled that tainted candidates must return the salaries they received, along with applicable interest. Acting on these orders, the department has sought detailed reports from District Magistrates across the state and has issued official communications to initiate recovery proceedings.
Sources indicate that district administrations have also been directed to submit compliance reports to ensure swift implementation of the court’s directives. While the previous government had issued a notification regarding the matter, no concrete recovery process had been undertaken. Administrative action, however, reportedly gained momentum soon after the new government assumed office.
As per court observations, recovery will be limited strictly to individuals who secured employment through proven irregularities. These include allegations of OMR sheet tampering and unlawful manipulation of merit rankings. The High Court had earlier stipulated that a 12 percent interest be levied on the recovered amounts.
At the same time, the Supreme Court has adopted a humanitarian approach in specific cases, granting certain relaxations for differently-abled teachers and non-teaching staff.
The latest developments have intensified pressure on dismissed candidates, even as the government moves to reinforce transparency in the recruitment system. In a parallel step, the West Bengal SSC has released OMR sheets from the 2016 examination, allowing candidates to access their records online using their roll numbers—a long-standing demand among affected individuals.
According to SSC officials, the OMR sheets have been uploaded based on data retrieved from hard drives provided by the CBI, in strict adherence to Supreme Court directives. Currently, OMR sheets for the SLST (AT) examinations for Classes IX–X and XI–XII have been made available, with those for Group C and Group D posts expected to be released shortly.
The twin measures — salary recovery and public access to examination records — signal the new administration’s attempt to resolve a prolonged legal impasse while restoring accountability and transparency in the state’s teacher recruitment process.
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