Kolkata, June 3: The notification issued by the West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC) to fill vacant posts of teachers in state-run schools has been challenged at the Calcutta High Court on Tuesday.

The single-judge vacation bench of Justice Raja Basu Chowdhury admitted the petition. The matter is likely to come up for a hearing at his bench on June 5.

The petitioner claimed that certain points in the notification, especially those as regards to changed weightage criteria in the distribution of total marks in the recruitment process, violated the Supreme Court’s directives on fresh recruitments.

The main ground on which the notification was challenged was that the weightage criteria in the distribution of total marks had changed from those in 2016.

As per the new notification issued last week, the written examination in the fresh recruitment process will carry 60 marks, as against 55 for the 2016 panel.

Secondly, the weightage criterion for educational qualification in the fresh recruitment process is just 10 as against 35 for the 2016 panel.

Most importantly, two new weightage criteria, each carrying 10 marks, “past teaching experience” and “lecture demonstration”, have been introduced.

Soon after the notification was issued, several legal minds apprehended that the notification may face legal hurdles because of the changes in weightage criteria in total marks distribution.

Legal minds felt that while two new weightage criteria were introduced to give an advantage to the teachers from the 2016 panel who lost their jobs. They opined that the changed criteria would be disadvantageous for fresher candidates.

Bringing about changes in the weightage criteria was grossly illegal since the same weightage criteria, which applied to the 2016 panel, should also be there in the fresh recruitment process, they said.

Now their apprehensions have come true after a petition challenging the notification was filed at the Calcutta High Court, exactly on the points highlighted.

On April 3 this year, the Supreme Court’s division bench of erstwhile Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Sanjay Kumar upheld a previous order by the Calcutta High Court’s division bench of Justice Debangshu Basak and Justice Shabbar Rashidi cancelling 25,753 school jobs in West Bengal.

The Apex Court also accepted the observation of the Calcutta High Court that the entire panel of 25,753 candidates had to be cancelled because of the failure of the state government and the commission to segregate the “untainted” candidates from the “tainted” ones.

The state government and West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC) had already filed review petitions at the Apex Court on this issue.

Chennai, June 3: A major reshuffle in the Tamil Nadu Prison Department has triggered widespread resentment among prison staff, who allege that the transfers were arbitrary and in violation of established government norms.

Several affected personnel are now considering legal action.

On May 27, DIG of Prisons Maheswar Dayal issued a sweeping order transferring 176 chief head warders across the state. The order includes long-distance reassignments, such as moving staff from Palayamkottai Central Prison to Vellore, nearly 600 kilometres apart, and vice versa.

Similar transfers were recorded from sub-jails in Nagapattinam and Ooty to Coimbatore and Palayamkottai, covering distances between 350 and 450 kilometres.

The move is part of a larger reshuffle underway over the past two months, involving assistant jailers, warders, and head warders.

While those posted over 400 kilometres away have been granted eight days to report for duty, others must report within six days.

Adding to the pressure, many have been verbally instructed to vacate their official quarters immediately.

A prison official based in Coimbatore expressed anguish: “My two children are in high school, and I’ve already paid their annual fees. How can I relocate my family overnight?”

Since April, nearly 250 personnel have been transferred, and insiders warn the move could damage morale and disrupt daily operations.

“This scale of reshuffling without consultation or consideration is unprecedented and could seriously impact the smooth functioning of prison administration,” said a senior official on condition of anonymity.

“Earlier, transfers were done through counselling and usually within a 60-100 km radius, keeping families in mind,” an officer said.

According to government rules, transfers are permitted once every three years.

A key government order issued by the Personnel and Administrative Reforms (Personnel M) Department in 1977 mandates that, when both spouses are in government service, efforts must be made to post them in the same station to support family welfare and children’s education. Already, one assistant jailer has secured a stay order from the court, while many others are reportedly preparing to file petitions challenging the transfer orders.

“If someone is facing proven corruption charges, a transfer — even to distant locations — is understandable. But these general transfers should factor in personal circumstances,” said a staffer from the southern zone.

In response, a senior prison department official defended the move, stating that many of the transferred employees had served in the same facility for over five years.

“The decision was made to break long-standing networks and eliminate potential corruption rings within prisons and sub-jails,” the official said, without offering further details.

As dissatisfaction continues to rise among the affected staff, legal battles and administrative scrutiny appear inevitable.

Chandigarh, June 3: Acting swiftly, Punjab Police have arrested Gagandeep Singh of Tarn Taran for sharing sensitive information concerning army movements during Operation Sindoor, Director General of Police Guarav Yadav said on Tuesday.

The accused had been in contact with the Pakistan’s ISI and Khalistani supporter Gopal Singh Chawla.

Investigations have revealed that he was engaged in sharing classified details, including troop deployments and strategic locations, posing a threat to national security, DGP Yadav wrote on the social media platform X.

Preliminary investigation revealed that Singh had been in touch with Pakistan-based Khalistani supporter Chawla for the past five years, through whom he was introduced to the Pakistani intelligence operatives.

He also received payments from operatives via Indian channels, the DGP said.

The police have recovered a mobile phone containing intelligence that Singh shared with Pakistan, as well as details of over 20 ISI contacts.

“Thorough financial and technical investigations are underway to trace other linkages and establish the full scope of this espionage network,” the DGP added.

A first information report (FIR) has been registered under the Official Secrets Act at the police station (city) in Tarn Taran town, and further investigation is in progress.

Earlier, Punjab Police arrested two people, including a 31-year-old woman, for their alleged involvement in espionage activities linked to an official posted at the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi.

Those arrested were identified as Gazala and Yameen Mohamad, both residents of Malerkotla in Punjab.

Police teams had recovered two mobile phones from their possession. Their arrest came days after Amritsar (Rural) Police arrested two people, Falaksher Masih and Suraj Masih, for their alleged role in leaking sensitive information and photographs of army cantonment areas and air bases to Pakistan’s intelligence agency.

DGP Yadav had said that the preliminary investigation revealed that the arrested accused had been receiving payments through online transactions in exchange for sharing classified information. They were in frequent contact with the handler and were involved in channelling funds to other local operatives as per his instructions.

Accused Gazala was arrested for leaking sensitive information regarding Indian Army movements to a Pakistan-based handler.

Based on disclosures made by her during interrogation, a second conduit identified as Yameen Mohamad was also identified and taken into custody.

Accused Gazala admitted that she was doing it in lieu of money, and the accused official has sent her Rs 30,000 in two transactions – Rs 10,000 and Rs 20,000 – via UPI.