UPSC Rejects Candidature Over Late Submission Of EWS Certificate; Supreme Court Allows Candidate To Appear For Interview

The Supreme Court recently granted interim relief relief to a candidate who was not allowed to appear for an Interview by the Union Public Service Commission which did not accept his Economically Weaker Section(EWS) category certificate and rejected his candidature. The Court issued notice to UPSC and directed it to allow the petitioner to appear for the personality test of UPSC ESE(Engineering Services Examination),2022. Meanwhile, his results shall be kept in a sealed cover till the next date of hearing, November 20.

The bench comprising Justices Hima Kohli and Justice Ahsanuddin Amanullah was hearing a writ Petition under Article 32 of the Constitution of India challenging the rejection of the petitioner's candidature by UPSC over the EWS category certificate.

The case is regarding the eligibility of a candidate from the Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) category for the UPSC Engineering Services Examination (ESE) 2022.

The petitioner had applied for the ESE 2022 following the examination notice issued on September 14, 2022. The notice specified that candidates applying for the EWS category should possess an Income and Asset Certificate issued by the prescribed authority by the application deadline, which was October 4, 2022.

The petitioner, who belongs to the EWS category, claimed to have applied well before the deadline. He submitted an online Income and Asset Certificate issued on February 4, 2022, for the financial year 2020-202. After clearing the preliminary examination, he appeared for the main examination held on June 25, 2023.

Upon the declaration of results, the petitioner was found to be successful and obtained an Income and Asset Certificate dated August 16, 2023, for the financial year 2021-2022. This certificate was duly submitted with the Detailed Application Form and uploaded on August 18, 2023.

However, the petitioner received a setback when UPSC declined to include his name for the personality test, citing a letter dated September 18, 2023. According to UPSC, the petitioner had submitted the Income and Asset Certificate dated February 7, 2023, and August 16, 2023, after the closing date of the online application for ESE 2023, which was set for October 4, 2022.

Also read about the recent Supreme Court judgment on a similar issue - UPSC Civil Service Exam - Candidates Can't Claim EWS Quota If Certificates Aren't Uploaded In Prescribed Format Before Cut Off Date: Supreme Court

Case title: Surendra Kumar Choubey v. UPSC

Citation: WRIT PETITION(S)(CIVIL) NO(S). 1123/2023

For petitioner: Adv Ms. Shahrukh Alam, AOR Ms. Tanya Shree, Adv. Mr. Ritu Raj, Adv. Mr. Shantanu Singh, Adv. Mr. Anupam Kirti, Adv. Mr. Akshat Chaitanya.

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