TET Review Petition: West Bengal Against Supreme Court’s Verdict on Teachers’ TET! Two Organizations File Review Petition, What’s Next?

TET Review Petition: The case regarding the Teacher Eligibility Test (TET) has taken a new turn. Following the Supreme Court’s verdict announced on September 1, 2025, several review petitions have been filed against it. So far, a total of 27 cases, including review petitions, writ petitions, and modification applications, have been lodged in the country’s apex court. Amidst this, two influential teacher organizations from West Bengal have also approached the Supreme Court, seeking a review of the judgment, which has caused a significant stir in the state’s teaching community.

Who is at the Forefront of the Review Petitions?

The two organizations from West Bengal that have joined this legal battle have a long history of working to protect the interests of teachers in the state. The organizations are:

• All Post Graduate Teachers’ Welfare Association: This association filed its review petition in the Supreme Court on November 13. They have directly demanded a reconsideration of the September 1, 2025 verdict.
• Greater Graduate Teachers’ Association (BGTA): This organization has also become a party to the ‘Chinmoy Ghosh vs. Anjuman Isha Eid Talim Trust’ case. Although it is currently filed under an individual’s name, sources within the organization indicate that they are considering taking larger organizational steps depending on the outcome of the review petition.

Why Was This Review Petition Filed?

The review petitions filed by these teacher organizations primarily focus on two key issues. Their main demands are:

1. Exemption for Pre-2011 Appointees: Teachers appointed before the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) first made TET mandatory in 2011 should not be brought under the purview of this rule. The organizations argue that a new rule cannot be applied to appointments made before the law came into effect.
2. Opposition to ‘Retrospective Effect’: A 2017 amendment introduced a ‘retrospective effect’ to the TET regulations, meaning it would be applicable from a past date. The organizations have strongly opposed this, as it could create uncertainty for many currently employed teachers.

Significance and Past Success of the Organizations

The involvement of these two organizations in the legal fight is particularly significant due to their track record of securing important victories for teachers in the past. Previously, when there was a risk of demotion for Normal Section teachers in the state due to complications related to the ‘Roster of Appointment’, it was these very organizations that challenged it in the Calcutta High Court and successfully stopped it.

BGTA had secured a verdict stating that Normal Section teachers appointed before 2016 could not be demoted to the upper primary level. Similarly, the Post Graduate Teachers’ association also obtained a favourable ruling for its members. Therefore, their current move has brought a ray of hope to many teachers in the state.

Current Status and Future Prospects

In a recent case from Assam (Sajal Deb’s case), the Honourable Justice Dipankar Datta highlighted the importance of these review petitions. He stated that the future of many similar cases depends on the outcome of these petitions.

Currently, the process of ‘curing’ the procedural defects in the review petitions is underway. Once this process is complete, the cases will be sent to the judges’ chambers for consideration. The judges will then decide whether the hearings for these reviews will be conducted as ‘chamber hearings’ or, given their importance, as ‘open court hearings’. The entire teaching community is now eagerly awaiting the Supreme Court’s next directive.