New Delhi: The Supreme Court, Tuesday, reserved its judgement in a batch of petitions challenging University Grants Commission (UGC) guidelines which mandate universities across the country to conduct final year exams by September 30.
A three-judge bench of the apex court comprising Justices Ashok Bhushan, R Subhash Reddy and MR Shah completed the hearing in the case and asked all counsels to submit their written submissions within three days.
Significantly, Odisha has opposed the guidelines issued by UGC making it mandatory to hold the final year examinations of UG and PG courses.
Advocate general of Odisha Ashok Parija submitted to the SC that COVID-19 cases are at their peak in the state and in such scenario, it would be impossible for the state to hold exams as mandated by the UGC. He also submitted that an alternative evaluation process has been devised by the state and the final examination should be culmination of six semesters.
The advocate general informed the court that colleges have been closed and students have left for their native places. In many parts of the state, students don’t have internet facility. They could neither come to colleges as the institutions and hostels have been shut. Thus, it is not possible to hold the examinations conventionally, the advocate general said.
The advocate general also submitted to the court that the UGC guidelines are themselves compromising with the standard of examinations.
“If the UGC guidelines are with regard to compromising the sanctity of final year examinations, the guidelines of UGC itself sacrificed the sanctity because either you will have online examination or open book examination and the normal examination which scheduled every time will not be conducted. So, anyway, you are compromising with the standard of examinations,” Parija said.
However, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, said that universities can seek postponement of exams but they cannot take decision of conferring degrees without exams.
It is to be mentioned here that UGC, through its July 6 order, had directed all 900 universities across the country to conduct final year exams by September 30 either through online, offline or in blended mode. Odisha, West Bengal, Maharashtra and Delhi have opposed the UGC guidelines for conducting examination by
September 30.