The Bombay High Court has directed the Maharashtra government to stop the salary of the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Solapur Zilla Parishad for a month. The order came after the court noted that the salaries of some teachers were not paid, despite a clear order from the court on November 26, 2024, according to a report by Live Law.

According to the news report, a division bench of Justices Ravindra Ghuge and Ashwin Bhobe orally stated that the CEO should also experience what it feels like to go without receiving a salary.

In the hearing on January 28, the bench noted that the CEO of Solapur Zilla Parishad has not followed the court’s order of November 26, 2024, which instructed the CEO to pay the remaining salaries of the three petitioning teachers by January 14, 2025. The teachers were not paid their salaries, despite working for eight months after their appointments.

However, on January 28, the court was informed that the teachers’ salaries were still unpaid.

In response to the non-compliance with the court’s order, the HC bench said, “We are directing the state government to stop the salary of the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Zilla Parishad, Solapur since our order has been disobeyed. The salary would be stopped until the salary of these Petitioners is paid,” according to Live Law. The court also adjourned the hearing of the case until March 5, 2025.

What the petitioners are fighting for

According to the news report, the three Solapur Zilla Parishad teachers approached the court to challenge their terminations months after their appointments. The petitioners alleged that they were initially barred from participating in the Teachers Aptitude and Intelligence Test (TAIT), despite being eligible.

Notably, the Bombay HC granted the teachers relief in 2023, which allowed them to take the exam. They cleared the tests and were appointed. Later, two FIRs were filed accusing fraud in the Teachers Eligibility Test conducted in December 2022. The results were published in March 2023.

The petitioners had received ‘character certificates’ from the local police, as required by the local authorities, and were appointed to the Solapur Zilla Parishad School in May 2024. However, by October 2024, they received termination letters.

When the petition was first heard on November 26, 2024, the judges issued a notice to the respondents and suggested they may decide on the petition at the admission stage. They also ordered the CEO to pay the petitioners’ unpaid salaries by January 14, 2025. However, the payments were not made even by January 28, 2025.