Disposed¶16

Baisakhi Saha v. State of West Bengal and Ors.

Calcutta HC26 Aug 2025MAT/492/2025

Case brief

AI extract

What is this about?

Teacher transfer West Bengal; willing teacher condition absent from notification dated 3rd January, 2022; DI (SE) duties and time-bound arrangement; resultant vacancy after transfer; MAT 492 of 2025; IA No. CAN 2 of 2025; WPA 29096 of 2024; Gokul Chandra Mallick MAT 1218 of 2024; Baisakhi Saha v. State of West Bengal; Central School Service Commission; three-month completion timeline; no costs.

What did the court decide?

Appeal and connected application for stay disposed of; impugned order modified with directions to the DI (SE) to act per the notification dated 3rd January, 2022, expedite filling of the resultant vacancy, and complete the exercise preferably within three months; no order as to costs. ¶16

Baisakhi Saha Vs State of West Bengal and Ors. — Calcutta HC (2025) — LawSathi Research

What the court decided

AI extract

Outcome

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Issue for consideration

Whether the appellant's claim for transfer can be kept in abeyance until a willing teacher is found to man her post, given that the notification dated 3rd January, 2022 contains no such requirement. +1 more

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Court's answer

The notification dated 3rd January, 2022 contains no rider requiring the DI (SE) to endeavour to find a willing teacher of a neighbouring school to man the appellant's post temporarily till the regular incumbent joins.

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Ratio / Principle

As the term 'willing' does not feature in the notification dated 3rd January, 2022, the appellant's claim for transfer cannot be kept in abeyance till a willing teacher is found.

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Key takeaways

The impugned order is modified: the DI (SE) shall act in strict consonance with the provisions of the notification dated 3rd January, 2022 and the observations made in this order, and take expeditious steps for filling up the resultant vacancy that may arise after the appellant is transferred.ratio¶14
The entire exercise shall be completed by the DI (SE), being respondent no. 5, preferably within a period of three months from the date of communication of this order.ratio¶15

Detailed headnote1 paragraphs

Division Bench disposes of appeal (MAT 492 of 2025) by Baisakhi Saha challenging the single Judge's order dated 9th January, 2025 (WPA 29096 of 2024) which declined to pass further orders facilitating her transfer for want of a willing teacher to man her post. Holds that the notification dated 3rd January, 2022 contains no rider requiring the DI (SE) to find a willing teacher of a neighbouring school, the term 'willing' does not feature in it, and the appellant's transfer claim cannot be kept in abeyance till a willing teacher is found. Modifies the impugned order, directs the DI (SE) (respondent no. 5) to act in strict consonance with the notification and take expeditious steps to fill the resultant vacancy, completing the exercise preferably within three months from communication of the order; no order as to costs.

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3 26.08.2025 Ct. No. 11 rrc

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MAT 492 of 2025 with IA No. CAN 2 of 2025 (Baisakhi Saha Vs. The State of West Bengal & Ors.)

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Mr. Shuvro Prokash Lahiri Mr. Rajesh Naskar Mr. Ankan Mondal …. For the appellant Mr. Vivekananda Bose Mr. Raj Sekhar Basu …… For the State

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Mr. Sourav Mitra Ms. Sreyasree Choushdury

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……. For the Central School Service Commission

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The present appeal has been preferred challenging an order dated 9^th January, 2025 passed in the writ petition being WPA 29096 of 2024 which was preferred by the writ petitioner/appellant herein, inter alia, praying for consideration of her application for transfer dated 22^nd January, 2024. By the order impugned the learned single Judge was pleased to observe that ‘today on behalf of the State respondents nothing is placed before this court showing that the concerned District Inspector of Schools (S.E.) was able to make alternative arrangement on making available willing teacher to man the post of the petitioner. Therefore no further order can be passed on this writ petition in order to facilitate transfer of the petitioner’ .

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Mr. Lahiri, learned advocate appearing for the appellant submits that the notification dated 3^rd January, 2022 casts a duty upon the DI (SE) to take urgent step in a time-bound manner to search for a teacher on the same subject from nearby and make local arrangement so that the teacher of the other school attends the school wherefrom the teacher has applied for transfer on days of the week on a temporary basis till such time a permanent teacher joins. There is no provision in the notification dated 3^rd January, 2022 to invite any option or choice of any other teacher to volunteer in rendering service to the school from where the appellant seeks transfer. In support of such contention reliance has been placed upon a judgment of a coordinate Bench of this Court delivered in the case of Gokul Chandra Mallick Vs. The State of West Bengal & Others (MAT 1218 of 2024).

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Mr. Bose, learned advocate appearing for the State respondents submits that the learned single Judge has rightly observed that no willing teacher to man the post of the appellant is available, as required under the provisions of the notification dated 3^rd January, 2022 and that in the absence of a willing teacher, no right accrues in favour of the appellant to be transferred.

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Mr. Mitra, learned advocate appearing for the Commission submits that no allegations have been levelled against the Commission in the writ petition.

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We have heard the learned advocates appearing for the respective parties and considered the materials on record.

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In the notification dated 3^rd January, 2022 there is no rider that the DI (SE) has to make any endeavour to find out any willing teacher of neighbouring school, who can man the post of the appellant temporarily till the regular incumbent joins the post. The term ‘willing’ does not feature in the said notification. The appellant’s claim for transfer cannot be kept in abeyance till a willing teacher is found.

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In view of the above, the order impugned in the present appeal is modified to the effect that the DI (SE) shall act in strict consonance with the provisions of the said notification dated 3^rd January, 2022 and the observations made in this order and take expeditious steps for filling up the resultant vacancy that may arise after the appellant is transferred.

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The entire exercise shall be completed by the DI (SE) being the respondent no. 5 herein preferably within a period of three months from the date of communication of this order.

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With the above observations and directions, the appeal and the connected application for stay are disposed of.

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There shall, however, be no order as to costs.

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Urgent photostat certified copy of this order, if applied for, be supplied to the parties, upon compliance of all requisite formalities.

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(Reetobroto Kumar Mitra, J.) (Tapabrata Chakraborty, J.)

Baisakhi Saha v. State of West Bengal and Ors.

Case brief

What is this about?

What did the court decide?

Baisakhi Saha v. State of West Bengal and Ors.

Case brief

What is this about?

What did the court decide?

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What the court decided

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