Calcutta HC stays primary TET result

Calcutta High Court has put a stay on the publication of primary Teacher Eligibility Test (TET) result until January 19.

Primary TET was conducted on October 11 to fill up 40,000-odd vacant teaching posts at primary schools across West Bengal. The result was expected to be published later in December.

The division Bench of Chief Justice Manjula Chellur and Justice Joymalya Bagchi on Wednesday passed the stay order while hearing a writ petition by a section of the TET examinees. 

Their argument was, Right to Education (RTE) Act had given a concession for recruitment of untrained candidates till March 2014. Hence, the state government’s move to extend this further until March 2016 was a gross violation of the Act.

On listening to the arguments by the petitioners, the Bench of Chief Justice Chellur and Justice Bagchi found prima facie merit in the case and passed an interim stay on the publication of primary TET result until the Bench takes up the case for hearing again on January 19.

The stay order has turned uncertain the future of nearly 23 lakh candidates, who had appeared in the primary TET that was marred by the loss of question papers, repeated postponements and then alleged leak of question papers. 

A separate case over the question paper leak is already being heard by Justice Debangshu of the Calcutta High Court.

With the lapse of more time, it will become almost improbable for the primary TET result to be published before the West Bengal Assembly polls tentatively scheduled for April-May.