Kolkata, May 20: The Calcutta High Court on Tuesday refused to vacate the stay imposed earlier by its single-judge bench on recruitments for supernumerary posts in the upper-primary sections in state-run schools of West Bengal.

The stay on such recruitment was originally imposed by the single-judge bench of Justice Biswajit Basu. Thereafter, the state government appealed the decision and a division bench of Justice Soumen Sen and Justice Smita Das heard its plea to vacate the stay.

However, after days of hearing in the matter, the division bench of Justice Sen and Justice Das refused to vacate the stay imposed by the bench of Justice Basu.

The division bench observed that since the case related to recruitment for supernumerary posts was still pending at the single-judge bench, vacating the stay was not desirable.

The next hearing on the matter at the single-judge bench of Justice Basu is scheduled on June 18. The next hearing is crucial in the sense that more legal arguments both for and against the justification for supernumerary recruitment might surface then.

Recently, a group of candidates for the posts of upper-primary teachers staged protests in front of the chamber of Calcutta High Court’s senior advocate and the CPI-M Rajya Sabha member Bikas Ranjan Bhattacharya.

The main grudge of the protesters against Bhattacharya was that his legal arguments often led to the cancellation of school jobs in the state. During those protests, the protesters also used derogatory comments on Justice Basu because of some negative observations by the latter in the cases on the alleged school jobs scam.

Already, a suo motu contempt-of-court case has been filed in the matter against the protestors and those masterminding that. The case is being heard by a special three-judge bench of Justice Arijit Banerjee, Justice Sabyasachi Bhattacharya, and Justice Rajarshi Bharadwaj, which was constituted especially to hear this particular case.

Raipur, May 20: The investigators in Chhattisgarh have ramped up efforts to uncover the details of a massive liquor scam, estimated to be worth Rs 2,000 crore.

The Economic Offence Wing (EOW) and the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) have launched a series of coordinated raids across multiple districts, including Durg-Bhilai and Mahasamund.

Reports suggest that enforcement teams are actively conducting operations at 22 locations in Durg-Bhilai, after arriving in Bhilai on Tuesday morning in four vehicles.

Additional searches are underway in Sankara and Basna within the Mahasamund district, focusing on individuals closely associated with former Excise Minister Kawasi Lakhma, sources said.

The authorities have expanded their scrutiny to business establishments, with EOW teams inspecting the residences of individuals suspected of involvement in the scam.

The investigation has widened to the Mahasamund district, where the enforcement teams had raided the premises of a businessman and an LIC agent believed to be linked to the illicit liquor trade.

The ACB and EOW teams have executed searches at more than 20 locations across the state, targeting key figures involved in the operation.

The investigation has caused a significant stir, with officials continuing to uncover crucial evidence.

The Enforcement Directorate arrested former Excise Minister Kawasi Lakhma on January 15 after multiple rounds of interrogation.

The ACB and EOW registered an FIR in January 2024 based on a letter from the Enforcement Directorate.

Recent findings indicate that the scam, which allegedly took place between 2019 and 2022, resulted in substantial financial losses to the state exchequer while generating illegal profits exceeding Rs 2,100 crore.

The syndicate behind the scam reportedly includes senior bureaucrats, politicians, and excise department officials.

The authorities have confiscated cash, electronic devices, bank records, and land investment documents from suspects’ residences earlier. The investigation remains active as officials work to expose the full extent of the fraudulent activities.

New Delhi, May 20: Amid the growing verbal exchange between the Congress and BJP over India’s ‘alerting’ Pakistan ahead of Operation Sindoor, the latter stepped up the offensive and took a caustic jibe at the Leader of Opposition (LoP), Rahul Gandhi, on Tuesday.

BJP IT cell chief Amit Malviya took to X to share a picture of Congress MP and Pak Army chief Asim Munir overlapping with each other.

“What’s next for Rahul Gandhi? The Nishan-e-Pakistan?” he wrote, taking a sharp swipe.

Rahul Gandhi, along with other Congress leaders, has been targeting the Centre over External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar’s statement that India gave a warning to Pakistan before launching a military operation. Congress claims that it was not just a strategic lapse but an ‘unpardonable’ crime. However, the charges have been outrightly refuted by the Ministry.

Amit Malviya, sharing the juxtaposed picture of Rahul and Pak Army chief on X, accused the Congress leader of speaking on behalf of Pakistan.

“It is not surprising that Rahul Gandhi is speaking the language of Pakistan and its benefactors. He hasn’t congratulated the Prime Minister on the flawless Operation Sindoor, which unmistakably showcases India’s dominance.”

He also claimed that the Congress MP hasn’t once inquired about how many Pakistani jets were shot down during the conflict, or how many were destroyed while parked in their hangars when Indian forces pounded Pakistani airbases.

“Instead, he repeatedly asks how many jets we lost – a question that has already been addressed in the DGMO briefings,” Malviya claimed.

The controversial image of Rahul and Asim Munir, put together in one frame, is set to create a political furore, with Congress taking a strong objection to it.

Early this morning, Assam cabinet minister Ashok Singhal also shared the same image and captioned it – ‘divided by borders, united by agenda’, reiterating the party’s charge that Congress’ talk of national security merely remains on paper and when it comes to action, they start taking sides of India’s adversary.

In another post, Malviya wrote that Rahul Gandhi was the new age Mir Jafar and also shared a cartoon.