The Supreme Court dismissed a batch of writ petitions filed by 361 teachers and non-teaching staff working in various recognised Madrasahs in West Bengal, rejecting their claim for payment of salaries under the State Government's Grant-in-Aid Scheme. The Bench of Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice A.G. Masih held that the petitions lacked merit after examining representative cases placed before it. The judgment brings an end to prolonged litigation arising from appointments made during the period when the West Bengal Madrasah Service Commission Act, 2008 had been declared unconstitutional by the Calcutta High Court, before being subsequently upheld by the Supreme Court.
The dispute has its origins in the legal uncertainty surrounding the West Bengal Madrasah Service Commission Act, 2008. Initially, a Single Judge of the Calcutta High Court declared the legislation unconstitutional, and the decision was affirmed by a Division Bench. During the period when the High Court's judgment remained operative, several Managing Committees of Madrasahs proceeded to appoint teachers and non-teaching employees independently. Subsequently, however, in SK. Mohd. Rafique v. Managing Committee, Contai Rahamania High Madrasah (2020), the Supreme Court reversed the High Court's decision and upheld the constitutional validity of the 2008 Act. As a result, questions arose regarding the legality of appointments made during the intervening period.
The petitioners contended that they had been regularly appointed by recognised Madrasahs and had discharged their duties for several years. According to them, once the educational institutions were recognised and they had actually served in those institutions, they were entitled to receive salaries under the Government's Grant-in-Aid Scheme. They argued that denial of salary despite rendering educational services violated principles of fairness and legitimate expectation. They therefore sought directions from the Supreme Court requiring the State Government to recognise their appointments and release grant-in-aid salaries.
The controversy had earlier reached the Supreme Court through contempt proceedings relating to implementation of the judgment upholding the 2008 Act. During those proceedings, the Court recognised that numerous individuals claimed to have been appointed after the High Court had declared the statute unconstitutional. Consequently, on 2 February 2023, the Supreme Court constituted a committee to examine each claimant's appointment individually and determine whether the appointments satisfied the applicable legal requirements. The committee scrutinised the records submitted by the claimants but ultimately rejected their claims. Dissatisfied with that outcome, the affected teachers and staff members invoked the Supreme Court's jurisdiction under Article 32 of the Constitution by filing multiple writ petitions challenging the committee's decision.
When the matter came up for hearing, the Supreme Court decided to examine a representative sample rather than immediately scrutinise every individual claim. The Court directed the petitioners' counsel to identify a limited number of the strongest cases capable of demonstrating that the appointments were legally valid. Ultimately, particulars relating to 13 representative petitioners were placed before the Bench. The Court made it clear that if even one of those representative cases successfully established entitlement, it would proceed to examine the remaining claims in greater detail.
To facilitate judicial examination, the Bench framed specific legal questions regarding the validity of the appointments. Among the issues considered were whether the concerned Madrasahs possessed valid recognition from the West Bengal Board of Madrasah Education on the dates of appointment and whether the Managing Committees making those appointments had themselves been lawfully constituted in accordance with the applicable Management Rules and duly approved by the competent educational authorities. These questions were regarded as fundamental because appointments made without recognised institutions or properly constituted Managing Committees could not ordinarily confer enforceable legal rights against the State.
After examining the representative cases, the Supreme Court concluded that none of the selected petitioners had succeeded in establishing a legal basis for claiming salaries from the Government. Delivering the operative order, the Bench observed that since even the representative cases failed to satisfy the Court, there was no justification for undertaking a detailed examination of the remaining petitions. The Court therefore held that all the writ petitions were without merit and dismissed them in their entirety.
The judgment underscores an important principle governing public employment and grant-in-aid institutions. Merely working in a recognised educational institution does not automatically create an enforceable right to receive salary from the Government. Public funds can be disbursed only where appointments have been made strictly in accordance with the governing statutory framework, prescribed recruitment procedure, and valid approvals granted by the competent authorities. Courts have consistently maintained that financial liability cannot be imposed upon the State in the absence of lawful appointments made under the applicable legal regime.
The decision also highlights the consequences of appointments made during periods of legal uncertainty. Although the High Court had initially declared the 2008 Act unconstitutional, the Supreme Court's subsequent restoration of the statute altered the legal position retrospectively. Consequently, appointments made without following the statutory recruitment mechanism prescribed under the restored legislation could not automatically acquire legal validity merely because they were made during the pendency of the earlier High Court judgment. The Court's reasoning reinforces the principle that statutory recruitment procedures exist to ensure transparency, fairness, and uniformity in appointments to aided educational institutions.
The ruling further illustrates the limited scope of judicial review under Article 32 in matters involving disputed appointments. While the Supreme Court possesses wide powers to enforce fundamental rights, persons claiming entitlement to public employment or government salary must first establish a legally enforceable right arising from valid appointments. Constitutional remedies cannot be invoked to validate appointments that fail to satisfy the statutory conditions governing recruitment and recognition.
Another significant aspect of the judgment is the Court's adoption of a representative-case approach. Instead of individually examining all 361 claims, the Bench evaluated a carefully selected sample of thirteen petitioners whose cases were projected as the strongest. Once those representative claims failed to establish entitlement, the Court considered it unnecessary to undertake a repetitive examination of the remaining petitions. This approach enabled efficient judicial determination while ensuring that the principal legal issues were fully addressed before dismissing the entire batch of petitions.
The judgment has important implications for appointments in aided educational institutions across the country. It reiterates that government salary, grant-in-aid benefits, and recognition of service cannot be claimed solely on the basis of actual work performed. Compliance with statutory recruitment procedures, approval by competent authorities, and adherence to the governing educational framework remain indispensable prerequisites before any financial liability can be fastened upon the State. The ruling also reinforces judicial insistence upon legality in public appointments, particularly where expenditure from the public exchequer is involved.
In conclusion, the Supreme Court dismissed the claims of 361 teachers and non-teaching employees seeking salaries under West Bengal's Grant-in-Aid Scheme, holding that the representative cases examined failed to establish any legal entitlement. By refusing to recognise appointments that did not satisfy the statutory framework governing Madrasah recruitment, the Court reaffirmed that public employment and government-funded salaries must strictly conform to the requirements of law. The decision strengthens the principles of legality, accountability, and procedural compliance in appointments to aided educational institutions while bringing finality to a dispute that arose from the temporary constitutional uncertainty surrounding the West Bengal Madrasah Service Commission Act, 2008.
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