Calcutta HC Orders Enquiry By Committee Headed By Retired Judge Into Appointments To Aided Schools- Sets Aside Order For CBI Enquiry

A Division Bench of the Calcutta High Court today set aside the Single Bench's direction for CBI enquiry into the alleged irregularities in appointments of Group D workers in aided schools in the state by the West Bengal Board of Secondary Education (WBBSE).

The Division Bench, comprising of Justice Harish Tandon and Justice Rabindranath Samanta, constituted a three-member special probe team, which will be overseen by a retired High Court Judge, and directed it to submit its report in two months.

The team, comprising one member each from West Bengal Central School Service Commission (SSC), WBBSE and a practising lawyer at the High Court, will be overseen by Justice (retired) RK Bag, the Bench directed.

The Division Bench had on November 24 stayed for three weeks the Single Bench's order for CBI enquiry into the alleged irregularities in appointments.

Justice Abhijit Gangopadhyay had on November 22 ordered the CBI to enquire into the alleged irregularities in the appointment of Group D staff in aided/sponsored schools under WBBSE on purported recommendations by the state's School Service Commission (SSC) and to find out whether there is any money trail involved.

The WBBSE had claimed before Court that all the appointments were given on the basis of recommendations by the SSC. But the commission submitted an affidavit stating that after May 4, 2019, when the panel of Group D staff had expired, no recommendation letter was issued by any of its regions as claimed in the petitioner's list.

The Court had directed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) director to constitute a committee, headed by an officer not below the rank of a Joint Director, with officers not below the rank of DIG to initiate the enquiry.

"Without showing any disrespect to the police force of this State, I am passing this order giving the responsibility to the CBI only for the reason that both the authorities, the Commission and the Board, as also the police authority are controlled by the State," Justice Gangopadhyay had said in his order.

The Court had directed the CBI to file a preliminary report on the enquiry on December 21, following which it was to pass further directions.

The order of Justice Gangopadhyay was passed on a petition by some job aspirants, claiming that appointments were given to persons after the expiry of panel proposed for the posts of Group D staff in aided/sponsored secondary and higher secondary schools in the state and had produced a list of such alleged appointees before the Court.

With PTI inputs