UPSC Aspirant Who Missed Civil Services Mains Exam Due To COVID Moves Allahabad High Court For Extra Chance

A Civil Services aspirant, who couldn't appear for a few papers of the Union Public Service Commission's (UPSC) Civil Services Main Examination 2021 due to COVID-19, has approached the Allahabad High Court seeking an additional chance to write the remaining papers.

Hearing the matter on Wednesday, the Bench of Justice Vivek Chaudhary deferred the hearing to March 30, 2022, as it sought details of an SLP pending before the Supreme Court for the same cause of action.

Essentially, UPSC Aspirant Abhinav Mishra had qualified for the Prelims Examination and was eligible to write the Mains, however, he left the exams midway after appearing for five papers on account of contracting COVID positive. The petitioner was completely vaccinated with the dosages of COVAXIN, before appearing in the Mains Examination on 7th January 2022.

In his plea, the petitioner has submitted that after he tested COVID Positive on January 14, 2022, he contacted the UPSC, however, he got no reply from them on mail, and therefore, he reached his allotted center and requested the examiner to allow him to write the examination in the separate rooms, arrangement of which was mandatory to be done.

The plea further avers that the petitioner also requested the examiner to allow him to write the exam in an open area at the center, which is at a reasonable distance from other candidates so that the safety of each and every person could be ascertained at the center. The petitioner was, however, informed that he wouldn't be allowed to give the exam as he has been tested positive.

Agaisnt this backdrop, the petitioner moved the HC, praying that he be allowed to write the remaining 4 exams of the U.P.S.C Civil Services (Mains) Examination, 2021, for which he was restrained from appearing on January 15, 2022, as he tested COVID positive before the examination.

The plea moved and argued through Advocate Ankit Tripathi contends that the absence of any policy that may provide accommodations for COVID positive candidates during the main examination [Scheduled for January 7 to January 16] or before is in violation of Articles 14 and 16 of the Constitution.

In this regard, the petitioner has sought relief for making some measures to allow the petitioner to appear in the remaining papers, which he was unable to undertake or extend him an additional attempt to appear in the exam before the announcement of the Civil Service Mains Examination 2021 results.

The petitioner, in the alternative, seeks a writ of Mandamus directing the respondents to allow him an extra attempt for appearing in the U.P.S.C. Civil Services Examination, 2022. 

It may be noted that the Supreme Court, on Monday, granted two weeks time to the Union Public Service Commission(UPSC) to respond to a petition by three civil services aspirants, who missed out on the papers of the Union Public Service Commission's (UPSC) Civil Services Main Examination due to COVID-19 seeking additional attempt to appear in the exam.

Read more about the case here: Supreme Court Grants 2 Weeks Time To UPSC To Respond To Civil Service Aspirants' Plea For Extra Chance In Mains Exam

Case Title: Abhinav Mishra v. Union Of India Thru. Secy. Dept. Of Personnel And Training New Delhi And Another

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