SC gives UPSC two weeks to respond to plea for another chance to Covid-hit aspirants

New Delhi, March 7

The Supreme Court on Monday gave two weeks to the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) to respond to a petition seeking an extra chance for those who couldn’t write the 2021 Mains Examination held between January 7 and 16 due to Covid-19 infection.

A Bench led by Justice AM Khanwilkar gave two weeks to the UPSC after its counsel said the issue was ‘very complicated’ and he needed to take instructions before a decision was taken.

“I think this is an issue which is very, very complicated. I think I need instructions and place on record all the aspects before your lordships, before any decision is taken,” the UPSC’s counsel told the Bench which posted the matter for further hearing on March 21.

Three Civil Services aspirants who couldn’t write the UPSC 2021 Mains Examination due to Covid-19 infection want another chance.

The top court had on February 28 agreed to take up their plea on March 7 after senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan, representing the petitioners, said the petitioners could have lied, but they have come to the court with clean hands.

It had asked the petitioners to give an advance copy of the petition to the UPSC counsel.

Petitioners Arjit Shukla and other candidates had cleared the UPSC 2021 Prelims Examination but could not appear in many of the papers of the Mains Examination held last month after testing Covid-19 positive.

They have sought a direction to the UPSC to give them an additional attempt to appear in the Civil Services Exam or allow them to appear in the papers they could not write, before the publication of final results. One of them could not appear in any of the papers due to Covid-19 infection.

The petitioners—who submitted their RTPCR test reports—submitted that they couldn’t writethe UPSC Mains Examination due to the restrictions imposed under the strict quarantine guidelines for Covid-19.

Contending that the UPSC didn’t have any policy regarding making alternative arrangements for such Covid-19 positive candidates positive for Mains Examination, they said it violated their rights.