In a quiet courtroom turn, the Supreme Court today saw the withdrawal of a high-profile contempt petition against West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. The move came after the Attorney General for India, R Venkataramani, declined to give consent for initiating criminal contempt proceedings over her comments on the West Bengal School Service Commission (SSC) recruitment case.
The petition, filed by Aatmadeep, a public charitable trust, had alleged that the Chief Minister made objectionable remarks against the Court's April ruling on the SSC recruitment irregularities.
Background
The controversy stems from a landmark judgment earlier this year. A bench led by then-Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna had upheld the Calcutta High Court’s decision to cancel nearly 25,000 teaching and non-teaching appointments made by the SSC in 2016. The High Court had found the selection process to be riddled with fraud and “tainted beyond repair.”
Following this, the petitioner approached the Supreme Court, seeking criminal contempt proceedings against Mamata Banerjee for her public comments criticizing the judgment.
Court’s Observations
During the hearing, the counsel for Aatmadeep informed the bench, “We have received instruction to withdraw the petition, the consent was applied, but the AG has not given consent.”
The bench, comprising Chief Justice BR Gavai and Justices K Vinod Chandran and NV Anjaria, promptly noted the development. The CJI allowed the withdrawal without further debate.
In previous hearings, Senior Advocate Maninder Singh had requested the Court to defer the matter while awaiting the Attorney General’s sanction. The Chief Justice had also observed in passing that political battles must remain outside Courtrooms, signaling caution against unnecessary judicial involvement in politically sensitive disputes.
Decision
With the Attorney General declining to grant consent for criminal contempt, the bench allowed the petition to be formally withdrawn. The Court thus concluded the matter at this stage, leaving no active contempt proceedings against the West Bengal Chief Minister.
The case, formally listed as AATMADEEP (A PUBLIC CHARITABLE TRUST) vs. MAMATA BANERJEE, Diary No. 21869/2025, ends here, maintaining the Supreme Court’s earlier position on the SSC recruitment case but drawing a clear line against political commentary triggering legal action.
Case Title: AATMADEEP (A Public Charitable Trust) vs. Mamata Banerjee
Diary Number: 21869/2025
