West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has reportedly been issued a contempt notice over her recent remarks made against the Supreme Court’s judgment in the SSC teacher recruitment scam case. The notice has been issued by advocate Siddharth Dutta on behalf of an NGO named Aatmdeep, as per reports.
What does the legal notice say?
The legal notice, dated April 10, 2025, comes in the wake of the Supreme Court’s April 3 judgment that upheld the Calcutta High Court’s decision to cancel approximately 26,000 illegal appointments in the state’s teaching and non-teaching staff recruitment, known as the “SSC Job Scam.”
According to the notice, the chief minister’s statement made during a public event on April 8 directly defies the Supreme Court’s ruling. While addressing the audience, Banerjee questioned the authority behind terminating jobs and said that she is ready to reinstate the affected people and had asked them to continue in their terminated jobs.
In the legal notice, advocate Dutta demands on behalf of Aatmdeep that Mamata Banerjee should instruct state authorities to fully comply with the April 3 judgment, refrain from making public statements suggesting non-compliance and issue an unconditional apology to the Supreme Court.
The notice states that failure to comply with these demands may lead to legal action and contempt proceedings under Article 129 of the Constitution and the Contempt of Courts Act, 1971.
What did Mamata Banerjee say?
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday expressed firm support for a group of school teachers whose appointments were recently annulled following a Supreme Court verdict. Speaking at a gathering at Kolkata’s Netaji Indoor Stadium, Banerjee had assured that no “eligible candidate” would be rendered jobless, even if it meant personal repercussions.
“I can even be jailed for saying this, but I don’t care,” she declared, affirming her commitment to stand by the affected educators.
Banerjee’s stance drew strong criticism from the Opposition, particularly the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Supreme Court Verdict on SSC Teacher Recruitment Scam
On April 3, the Supreme Court upheld a Calcutta High Court ruling that cancelled 25,752 teaching and non-teaching appointments made through the 2016 School Service Commission (SSC) recruitment process. The decision was based on findings of tampered OMR sheets and manipulated merit lists.
The original recruitment had received nearly 23 lakh applications for 24,640 sanctioned posts. However, more appointment letters were issued than there were approved vacancies, leading to widespread allegations of corruption and procedural fraud.
Not All Were Corrupt: Mamata Banerjee
While acknowledging the court’s concerns, Banerjee emphasized that not every recruit was involved in malpractice. “Please don’t think we have accepted this silently. We are not stone-hearted. We have a plan to ensure that eligible candidates don’t suffer a break in service,” she had stated. She also sought to disassociate herself from the alleged scam, saying, “My name is being dragged into something I have no inkling about.”
Trinamool Ministers show solidarity with CM
The Chief Minister was joined on stage by Education Minister Bratya Basu and 20 teachers selected from a core group she had personally formed. This was widely viewed as a gesture of solidarity with those affected by the verdict.
