Kolkata, Oct. 6 -- The Calcutta High Court has held that West Bengal cannot retrospectively apply a new reservation roster to doctors who began their three-year bond service under an earlier policy, saying that changing the terms midway through the bond period would be "improper" and "illegal".
Justice Amrita Sinha passed the order on a petition by two doctors who completed their postgraduate courses in December 2024 and joined as Senior Residents in May 2025. Under the 2023 SOP then in force, they executed an indemnity bond to serve the state for three years. The first year involved postings at medical colleges and hospitals, while the remaining two years were to be spent at secondary-tier and rural hospitals according to the state's requirements.
The 2023 SOP provided for counselling based on a merit list prepared from the candidates' particulars. It did not provide for a fresh roster-based merit list when doctors moved into the second year of bond service.
The state's June 2026 SOP introduced a 100-point roster, including reservation categories, for counselling and vacancy allocation. Subsequent departmental circulars also sought fresh particulars from doctors who had passed out in December 2024. The court noted that the petitioners had already completed their first year under the earlier system and that applying the new roster could alter their inter-se position in the merit list and affect their chances of securing a hospital of their choice.
The court, however, consciously refrained from deciding whether roster-based posting could be applied to fresh batches of senior residents.
Holding that the process had begun when the doctors joined bond service in 2025, the court said the rules could not be changed after the game had begun.
It directed the state to allow the petitioners to complete their three-year bond service under the 2023 SOP.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.