HYDERABAD: A bench of the Telangana High Court on Wednesday upheld the orders of a single judge cancelling the Group-I preliminary exam held on June 11, 2023. It directed the Telangana State Public Service Commission (TSPSC) to conduct the exam afresh while strictly adhering to all instructions specified in the notification, including the mandatory use of biometric verification for all candidates.
The single judge’s decision followed a writ petition filed by B Prashanth and two other Group-I aspirants, citing the TSPSC’s failure to collect biometric data and the omission of hall ticket numbers and photographs of candidates on the OMR sheets. TSPSC filed a writ appeal before a bench challenging the single judge’s orders.
Senior counsel Allori Giridhar Rao, representing the petitioners, highlighted various lapses in TSPSC’s conduct of exam before the bench of Justice Abhinand Kumar Shavili and Justice Anil Kumar Jukanti.
He pointed out that the instruction for candidates to arrive at the exam venue at least 30 minutes before the test begins to record their photo image/thumb impression on the biometric system was not been followed.
Differences in security features between the hall tickets issued on October 16, 2022, and those issued on June 11, 2023 was also noted. He raised concerns about the absence of photos of candidates and hall ticket numbers on the OMR sheets.
In response, Advocate General (AG) BS Prasad, representing the TSPSC, asserted that all the Commission had taken extensive precautions to ensure a smooth examination process. The AG cited rigorous identity verification using Aadhaar, PAN, voter card, and driving licence, in conjunction with hall tickets.
The bench, while dismissing TSPSC’s writ appeal, questioned why the commission changed its decision regarding biometric verification without informing or issuing an addendum about the changes.
It said that TSPSC, as a constitutional body, cannot change its regulations without proper notification.
Earlier, the single judge had expressed dissatisfaction with the way TSPSC handled the preliminary examinations, highlighting the lack of diligence in verifying candidate details.
The court pointed to the discrepancy in the number of candidates who appeared for the exam on the day (2,33,248) and the figure reported after 17 days (2,33,506), with no explanation for the difference.
The court stressed that the instructions issued by TSPSC were binding for both the commission and the candidates. While the commission had the authority to modify these instructions unlike in the case of the Group-IV examination, the court said.
TSPSC argued that the preliminary examination served as a screening test, and candidates facing issues could still proceed to the mains examination.
However, the court clarified that successful candidates in the prelims would only be allowed to sit for the mains examination in a ratio of 1:50 based on their preliminary exam performance.
This could exclude highly qualified candidates, given the huge number of participants in the preliminary examination on June 11, 2023.
The court recognised the importance of the mains examination for candidates and sought to prevent any unfair outcomes, leading to the cancellation of the Group-I preliminary examination.