Bengal school job case: Calcutta HC asks Govt to file affidavit on super-numeric posts

Kolkata: A single-judge Bench of the Calcutta High Court, on Tuesday, directed the West Bengal Government to file an affidavit explaining why there was a necessity to create super-numeric posts for selection in state-run schools.

While giving a clear direction to the state government in the matter, the single- judge Bench of Justice Biswajit Basu also said that based on the points in the said affidavit, the court will decide whether super-numeric posts in appointment can be created at all.

On Tuesday, Advocate General Kishore Datta, while appearing on behalf of the West Bengal Government, argued that the intention of creating super-numeric posts was to not compromise with the eligibility criteria.

According to him, 1,600 posts have been created in state-run schools where there are provisions for vocational education and physical education.

“Out of 1,600 posts, 750 will be work education and the remaining for physical education. The appointments will be from the waiting lists published in 2016,” Datta argued.

However, CPI-M Rajya Sabha member and senior advocate Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya, who appeared on behalf of the petitioners opposing the creation of super-numeric posts, argued that the West Bengal School Service Commission has already admitted that the super-numeric posts were created to keep the jobs intact for those who were recruited illegally.

“The commission first admitted it at the Division Bench. However, later it withdrew the admission in front of a single-judge Bench,” Bhattacharya argued.

After hearing both sides, Justice Basu asked whether the state government can create super-numeric posts and if ‘yes’ who would be eligible for appointment on those posts.

Thereafter, Justice Basu directed the state government to file the affidavit on this count. The next date of hearing has been scheduled on February 28.