Delhi High Court
Anupam & Ors. vs University Of Delhi Through Its ... on 6 July, 2020
SINDHU KRISHNAKUMAR
06.07.2020 18:14
$~7
* IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI
Date of decision: 6th July, 2020
+ W.P.(C) 3946/2020 & CM APPLs. 14163/2020, 14164/2020,
14165/2020, 14172/2020.
ANUPAM & ORS. ..... Petitioners
Through: Mr. Akash Sinha, Mr. Shubham
Saket, Mr. Indrajeet Singh & Mr.
Gaurav Prakash Shah, Advocates.
Mr. Shivankar Sharma, Advocate for
Intervenors.
versus
UNIVERSITY OF DELHI THROUGH ITS REGISTRAR &
ORS. ..... Respondents
Through: Mr. Sachin Datta, Sr. Advocate with
Mr. Mohinder Rupal and Mr. Hardik
Rupal, Advocates for DU.
Mr. Apoorv Kurup & Ms. Nidhi
Mittal, Advocates for R-2/UGC.
Ms. Sunita Ojha, Advocate for UOI.
CORAM:
JUSTICE PRATHIBA M. SINGH
Prathiba M. Singh, J. (Oral)
1. This hearing has been held through video-conferencing.
2. Ld. counsel for the parties submit that they have no objection in this
Bench hearing this matter.
3. The present petition has been filed by several students of the final
year of the Delhi University (hereinafter 'DU') seeking quashing and
withdrawal of the notifications dated 14th May, 2020, 30th May, 2020 and
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27th June, 2020 in respect of undergraduate and postgraduate students,
including students of the School of Open Learning and Non-Collegiate
Women Education Board. Alternatively, the prayer is as under:
"b. Alternatively issue an appropriate writ, order
or direction in the nature of mandamus or any
other writ or direction as this Hon'ble Court may
deem fit in the interests of justice, thereby directing
Respondent No.1 to evaluate the final year students
based on the previous years' or semesters' results in
the same manner as the Respondent University has
planned to promote the first and second year
students of the Respondent University."
4. The submission made by Mr. Akash Sinha, ld. counsel appearing for
the Petitioners, is that the DU has notified the online Open Book
Examination (hereinafter 'OBE') which was to begin on 1st July, 2020.
However, on 27th June, 2020, the same was postponed to 10th July, 2020.
The exact dates for the conduct of examinations for the various courses have
still not been released. It is submitted by Mr. Sinha that there are several
problems which are being faced by students who are giving the mock tests.
He submits that there are 445 containment zones in Delhi itself. The online
examinations have to be given by students from their own private homes or
from the community service centres where there would be an arrangement
for computers. However, when several students reached the community
service centres, the centres were not aware of the mock tests to be
conducted.
5. He further submits that the portal of DU is also not working properly
and students are hailing from various States from across the country and the
peak of containment has also reached. Under such circumstances, permitting
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students to take examinations in community service centres also has a risk of
COVID-19 spreading further.
6. An application for impleadment has also been moved by five students
from Lady Shri Ram College, Delhi University. Out of these five students,
one student is from Faridabad, two from Delhi, one from Nagaland and one
from Rajasthan. It is submitted by Mr. Shivankar Sharma, ld. counsel
appearing for the said students that on 4th June, 2020 when the mock test
was taken, major technological lapses were found. He relies on the
screenshots which have been filed with the application to argue that the
upload file size is not sufficient and is only 5MB per question. Secondly, if
there is any delay in uploading of the answer sheets, the portal is being
timed out. It is further submitted that the data of the students has also been
compromised because all the personal details of the students have been
revealed on the website. Further, it is argued that the DU's site has crashed
multiple times and is unable to take the pressure of hundreds of students
logging in to access the question papers and for uploading their answer
sheets.
7. Mr. Sharma further submits that the Delhi University Teachers'
Association Office (DUTA) had in fact made a representation that the
conduct of OBEs online has made students more anxious and has taken a toll
on their well-being.
8. On behalf of DU, Mr. Sachin Datta, ld. Senior Counsel appearing
with Mr. Mohinder Rupal, ld. counsel submits that though there were
technical glitches faced on the first day of the mock test, on the second day,
the mock tests have been conducted smoothly. On a query from the Court, as
to whether the date sheet has been announced, it is submitted by them that
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though the dates are not readily available with them, the same has been
published on the website this morning. Mr. Datta, ld. Senior Counsel has
shared the final date sheet for the annual examinations using the 'share
screen' facility, as the Court is hearing the matter. On a question as to
whether the final schedule for the various steps to be taken i.e., the dates for
completion of examinations, evaluation of answer sheets, announcement of
results, release of transcripts, etc., has been finalised by the DU, Mr. Datta
and Mr. Rupal seek time to revert by tomorrow i.e., 7th July, 2020.
9. On behalf of the University Grants Commission (hereinafter 'UGC'),
Mr. Apoorv Kurup, ld. counsel submits that the guidelines of UGC are
advisory in nature and are not binding. He submits that initially guidelines
were released in April 2020, however, thereafter a committee has been
appointed, headed by Prof. R.C. Kuhad, which is yet to submit its report. He
does agree that a large number of universities do go by the UGC's
guidelines. He however submits that several universities have cancelled their
exams and several other universities have also gone ahead and held their
exams as per media reports. On a query as to whether the UGC's Committee
headed by Prof. R.C. Kuhad has submitted its final report after the initial
guidelines in April, 2020 were released, he submits that the same are being
finalized and are expected to be submitted shortly.
10. On behalf of Ministry of Human Resource Development, Union of
India, Ms. Sunita Ojha, ld. counsel submits that she does not have any
instructions as of today and there is no decision which has been published by
the Ministry of Human Resource Development on its website.
11. After hearing ld. counsel for the parties and after going through the
record, as also publicly available reports which have been brought on record,
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it is clear that the online examination which the DU intends to conduct had
various glitches during the mock tests. The following screenshots taken on
Saturday i.e., 4th July 2020, which have been placed on record, establish the
same:
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12. Mr. Sharma, appearing for the Intervenors in fact submitted that
students of Psychology were asked to take mock test in Statistics. Thus,
mock tests were not held in respect of all subjects.
13. Moreover, in DU, students hail from across the country including
from Assam, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Jammu and
Kashmir and Bihar. Some of the counsels have highlighted the fact that there
are floods in Assam and that there are various technical problems which are
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being faced in remote areas. Mr. Datta, ld. Senior Counsel submits that as
per the judgment of the ld. Single Judge of this Court which was passed on
23rd June, 2020 in Abhishek and Ors. v. University of Delhi [WP(C)
3268/2020], students who are unable to take the online exams, would be
given an option of taking the exams again in September, 2020. He submits
that the said judgment considers the fact that OBE could be conducted and
various directions were passed in respect thereof.
14. Perusal of the record reveals that in Abhishek (supra) the Court was
assured that mock tests would be conducted at least one week before the
actual examinations and that all endeavour would be made to provide
technological support in the form of Common Service Centres. Relevant
portions of the said judgement are set out below:
"18. On the suggestion relating to clause 8 of the
Notification dated 30.5.2020 by learned senior
counsel for the petitioner reference may be had to
the said clause :-
"8. The students may contact in
advance with their college through e-
mode to avail the ICT based
infrastructure facility for
examination. Subject to availability of
these facilities, the college may decide
to extend the same their students in
limited number those who need to be
taken care in case of non availability
of internet and hardware required for
examinations. However, norm of
social distancing, safety and health
issues have to be taken care at
priority and no compromise should be
allowed while extending facilities. If
number increases, the students can
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avail the facilities available at
Common Service Centre (CSC) (as
mentioned later) in the nearest
location of their residence."
In my opinion, the colleges should endeavour to
provide such infrastructure facility for students
who are unable to access internet and other
hardware required for the „OBE‟. Accordingly
the colleges affiliated to respondent/Delhi
University will ensure compliance of clause 8 of
Notification dated 30.5.2020.
19. Another concern urged was about conduct of
Mock Tests. The respondent/University will ensure
that the said option is available expeditiously"
15. Various developments have taken place since the passing of the order
in Abhishek (supra). The same are -
(i) Re-consideration by the UGC as to whether final year
examinations ought to be conducted;
(ii) Postponement of the examinations by DU without specific
dates being announced for all courses. This fact is also noticed
by the ld. Division Bench in Prateek Sharma & Anr Vs. UOI
& Anr [WP(C) 3199/2020] in its order dated 29th June 2020;
(iii) Mock tests not being conducted in time and in several subjects
no mock tests have been conducted;
(iv) Technological glitches being faced during mock tests on 3rd and
4th July, 2020.
(v) CSCs not being aware of the conduct of mock tests.
16. The events which have now transpired show that the directions given
in Abhishek (supra) on the basis of the assurances of the University have
not been observed in letter and spirit. Further, the exam schedule has been
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completely upset due to the postponement of the exams till 10th July, 2020.
The date sheet for some of the courses has been uploaded but for some
courses the date sheet also has not yet been announced, though it is
submitted even today that the examinations will commence on 10 th July
2020.
17. The COVID-19 outbreak has caused considerable disturbance in the
schedules for studies and examinations across educational institutions.
Various methods of imparting education have been adopted. Insofar as DU
is concerned, the students state in the writ petition that the mid-semester
break was till 15th March, 2020 and immediately thereafter, the lockdown
was announced. In effect, since March 2020 several students have not had
any teaching except those who availed the teaching through the `Zoom' app,
as submitted by Mr. Datta.
18. Several students may have already obtained employment and may be
compelled to report to their jobs. Several other students may be scheduled to
pursue post graduate studies in India and in foreign countries. It is a matter
of common knowledge that the deadlines for submission of final year
transcripts in all these Universities would be in August-September 2020. A
large number of States, Universities and institutions have cancelled final
year examinations - for eg., State of Maharashtra, Orissa, Haryana, MP,
Punjab, NALSAR (Hyderabad), NUJS (Kolkata), IIT Kharagpur, IIT
Bombay, Calcutta University, Lucknow University, Punjab University, Dr.
APJ Abdul Kalam University etc., Some Universities and institutions have
opted for conducting examinations online which have already been
completed. A large number of Universities are also awaiting UGC's fresh
guidelines.
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19. Students in most Universities and institutions which have cancelled
the examinations have been promoted on the basis of past performance
coupled with internal assessments wherever available.
20. DU is a University of excellence. Studying in DU is a matter of pride
as it attracts the best talent from across the country. Thus, the problems of
DU students may be much more, and thus the difficulties of the large
expanse of students hailing from different regions needs to be borne in mind.
They cannot be judged on the basis of the facilities available in a city like
Delhi or other metros.
21. Administrative authorities who are in-charge of conducting
examinations in universities, including the UGC and the Central
Government, ought to also bear in mind that the COVID-19 pandemic has
resulted in enormous mental distress and agony to students. There are
families which are suffering medical illnesses and giving of examinations is
not just a technological issue but the state of mental preparedness of the
students also needs to be assessed.
22. The UGC, which is an overarching body for all the universities, ought
to in fact take a decision and give its recommendations to all the Universities
across the country. UGC is a party in the present petition and it is admittedly
considering the issues relating to final year examinations. Thus, there should
be no further delay in the UGC's Committee submitting its report and the
advisory from the UGC/ Ministry of HRD, being issued to Universities in
respect of conduct of final year examinations. Accordingly, it is directed as
under:
i) UGC's Committee headed by Prof. Kuhad shall submit its
report to the authorities concerned by 7th July, 2020 and the said
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report shall be placed on record on 7th July, 2020 by 4:00 pm i.e.,
when the matter is now listed. The UGC and the Ministry of HRD
shall take a specific stand as to whether they recommend cancellation
of final year examinations. Responsible officials from the Ministry of
HRD and UGC shall join the hearing tomorrow i.e., 7th July, 2020 at 4
pm;
ii) Secondly, the DU shall place on record the following data:
a) The number of students who are studying in the final
year of DU and the number of students who are registered for
the final year examinations to be conducted through the online
process;
b) A state-wise break-up of the students and from where
they have to take the examinations;
c) Preparedness of the website portal for handling of the
traffic during examinations, keeping in mind the recent
technical glitches faced by students during the mock exams;
d) The schedule of examinations i.e., evaluation of papers,
date for announcement of results and date for issuance of
transcripts. While preparing and placing on record the schedule
before this Court, DU shall bear in mind the deadlines for all
the final year students who have to seek employment, deadlines
for postgraduate entrance examinations, deadlines for
submission of documents to international universities where
students may have secured admission etc.
23. Prof. Vinay Gupta, Dean of Examinations, Delhi University shall also
join the hearing tomorrow. Mr. Sharma, ld. counsel agrees to e-mail another
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copy of the intervention application to Mr. Sachin Datta, ld. Senior Counsel
and Mr. Rupal, ld. Counsel for DU.
24. List on 7th July, 2020 at 4:00 pm.
PRATHIBA M. SINGH
JUDGE
JULY 06, 2020
Rahul/ T
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