Calcutta High Court Directs CBI To Recover OMR Data In Teacher Recruitment Scandal

In a significant development, Justice Rajasekhar Mantha of the Calcutta High Court issued directives on Friday for the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to employ specialized agencies in recovering crucial data related to optical mark recognition (OMR) sheets used in the 2014 recruitment of primary teachers in West Bengal’s state-run schools.

The court’s decision stems from ongoing proceedings concerning alleged irregularities and corruption surrounding the recruitment process.

Justice Mantha emphasized the importance of retrieving data from the OMR sheets, which he believes holds pivotal evidence regarding the roots of corruption in the teacher recruitment process.

During the hearing, Justice Mantha underscored that the CBI has the liberty to seek assistance from expert entities worldwide, including private firms specializing in Information Technology.

Notably, the entire cost of engaging these expert agencies has been mandate to be borne by the West Bengal Board of Primary Education (WBBPE).

Earlier, on 2 July, the court had directed the CBI to produce the original hard disk containing digitized copies of the OMR sheets.

However, in a subsequent hearing on Friday, the CBI informed the court that they were unable to comply with this directive, prompting Justice Mantha to instruct the agency to enlist the aid of external experts for data retrieval.

Furthermore, Justice Mantha raised concerns about the potential destruction of the hard disk. He suggested that if the WBBPE had lost the original data, it might still be residing on their servers.

This aspect is likely to be scrutinized as part of the ongoing investigation into the scandal.

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