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U.P.P.S.C. v. Rahul Singh & Anr. (with connected appeals)

Civil Appeal · 2018 INSC 554Decided 14 Jun 2018
Civil Appeal No. 5838 of 2018
Justice Uday Umesh Lalit · Justice Deepak Gupta

Background

The UP Public Service Commission conducted a preliminary examination for Upper Subordinate Services recruitment, and after expert committees reviewed objections to the published "key answers," several candidates challenged the correctness of specific answers in the Allahabad High Court. The High Court partly sided with the candidates on three questions, prompting cross-appeals to the Supreme Court by both the Commission and the candidates.

Decision Breakdown

The Supreme Court held that courts must exercise great restraint in second-guessing the correctness of examination key answers, deferring to subject-matter experts unless an error is patently and demonstrably obvious without any "inferential process of reasoning." Since the Commission's key answers here had already been vetted by multiple expert committees (one with 26 members) and were supported by textbook authority, and since the three disputed questions required extended reasoning to even question, the High Court had overstepped its jurisdiction. The Commission's appeal was allowed and the candidates' appeals dismissed.

Lesson Learnt

Candidates challenging an exam's official answer key face a very high bar: courts will not substitute their own judgment for that of subject experts unless the error is glaring and undeniable on its face.

Official source (sci.gov.in)View Judgment (PDF)

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