The Supreme Court has strongly criticized the West Bengal government's policy of excluding teachers who joined universities in the state from other states, deeming it a 10-year exclusionary norm based on continuous teaching.

In a related matter concerning teacher eligibility in West Bengal, the Supreme Court clarified the interpretation of Rule 6(2) in the West Bengal School Teachers Recruitment Rules, 2016. The court rejected the imposition of a cut-off date for eligibility, asserting that the recruitment notification itself should dictate eligibility. This ruling came after the Supreme Court scrutinized recruitment rules affecting numerous teacher candidates in West Bengal, focusing on how eligibility should be determined when a fixed cut-off date is absent. The Court supported the West Bengal Board of Primary Education's (WBBPE) affidavit, which acknowledged that the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) notification of July 29, 2011, did not specify a fixed date for assessing eligibility. The Board stated that the eligibility date could be the first day of the recruitment year, the date of the recruitment notification, or the date of candidate evaluation.

The case before the Supreme Court involved the WBBPE's recruitment of Assistant Teachers in 2022. A recruitment notice was announced on September 29, 2022, followed by a formal notification on October 21, 2022, inviting applications from TET-qualified candidates, including those appearing in the final D. El. Ed exams for 2020–22. Petitioners who completed the course by November 29, 2022, were permitted to apply, but their eligibility was challenged based on the argument that the cut-off date should have been September 29, 2022. The Calcutta High Court supported this view.

The Supreme Court referenced a previous ruling by the Rajasthan High Court (2024), which stated that if recruitment rules lack a cut-off date, the date in the advertisement inviting applications should be used; if that is also absent, eligibility criteria should be applied based on the last date for receiving applications. Applying this principle, the Court noted that the October 21, 2022, recruitment advertisement explicitly allowed applications from candidates "appearing for the session 2020" in relevant teacher training courses.

In another significant ruling, the Supreme Court validated the recruitment process for primary school teachers in West Bengal, allowing candidates completing their Diploma in Elementary Education (D.El.Ed) during the recruitment process to participate. The court held that Rule 6(2) incorporates NCTE qualifications without setting a specific date, clarifying that its purpose is not to declare a cut-off date for obtaining qualifications. The Supreme Court also upheld the validity of the recruitment notification dated October 21, 2022, and directed the WB Board to expedite the recruitment process.

Regarding the WBSSC SLST Assistant Teacher Eligibility Criteria 2025, candidates must be between 21 and 40 years old as of January 1, 2025. Age relaxation is applicable for reserved categories according to government rules. For Assistant Teacher positions in Classes IX and X, candidates need a Graduate or Postgraduate degree from a recognized university with at least 50% marks, along with a B. Ed. degree or a 4-year B.A. Ed. or B.Sc. Ed. degree from an NCTE-recognized institution. Reserved category candidates receive a 5% relaxation in minimum marks, and all qualifications must be completed before the application deadline. For Classes XI and XII, a Postgraduate degree with a minimum of 50% marks from a recognized university and a B. Ed., B.A. Ed., or B.Sc. Ed. degree from an NCTE-recognized institution are required.

In April 2025, the Supreme Court allowed the West Bengal government to continue employing 'untainted' assistant teachers for classes 9-12, whose appointments were previously canceled due to recruitment irregularities, until the fresh selection process is completed. The court ordered the state government to publish an advertisement for fresh recruitment by May 31 and complete the entire process by December 31. This order does not apply to Group C and D employees. The Supreme Court had earlier upheld a Calcutta High Court decision to terminate the appointments of approximately 25,753 teaching and non-teaching staff made by the WBSSC in 2016, due to a school jobs-for-cash scam. The Supreme Court stressed that students should not suffer and allowed 'untainted' teachers to continue teaching until the new selections are made.