In a blow to Mamata Banerjee, a Supreme Court bench directed the West Bengal government to pay 25 per cent of dearness allowance (DA) dues to state government employees by March 31. The top court also asked the state government to set up a four-member committee to take a decision on payment of the remaining 75 per cent of the DA arrears.

The order was passed by a bench comprising Justice Sanjay Karol and Justice Prashant Kumar Mishra. This is the same bench that had reserved its verdict in the case in August 2025.

In an interim order dated May 16, the Supreme Court had asked the Mamata Banerjee government to release 25 per cent of the DA dues to employees within three months. However, citing financial constraints, the state government had sought an extension of six months

Several delays

It is pertinent to mention that this DA dispute has seen multiple delays. There have been 18 adjournments since 2022 after the state government challenged contempt proceedings initiated against it by the Calcutta High Court. The Confederation of State Government Employees had moved the court against the state government’s refusal to clear the dues.

According to last year’s state budget proposals, the DA for West Bengal government employees was fixed at 18 per cent of basic salary effective from April 1, 2025. There is currently an estimated difference of about 40 per cent between the DA paid to central government employees and that to West Bengal government employees.