Kolkata: The Calcutta High Court on Tuesday lashed out at the West Bengal government for seeking appointment of contractual employees in lower courts, media reports said.

A single-judge bench of Justice Arindam Mukherjee had earlier stayed the government notification, which aimed at hiring 500 contractual employees in lower courts of North and South 24 Parganas districts, issued last year.

Justice Mukherjee had declared the notification as invalid.

On Tuesday, the Calcutta High Court's division bench comprising Chief Justice T.S. Sivagnanam and Justice Hiranmay Bhattacharyya  upheld the single bench's decision.

Frowning upon the government that had moved the division bench, the High Court said there is a limit to the recruitment of contractual staff in government offices and judiciary.

Moreover, the court said contractual employees will lose chances of  promotions with the fresh recruitment in this manner. It raised questions on whether the recruitment process would be "transparent".

The court also mentioned that the hiring of permanent staff has almost come to an end.

The government was trying to fill 500 of over 2,000 posts which are vacant in the court.