‘Let students come here themselves..,’ Supreme Court refuses to hear PIL against govt decision to cancel UGC-NET exam

The Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear a PIL challenging the government's decision to cancel the UGC-NET examination due to an alleged question paper leak.

A bench consisting of Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra noted that the dismissal of the PIL did not address its merits, as it was filed by a lawyer rather than by the affected students, PTI reproted.

“Why are you (lawyer) coming? Let the students come here themselves,” the CJI told the lawyer, adding “while declining the above PIL, we express nothing on merits”.

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The bench advised advocate Ujjawal Gaur, who had filed the PIL, to concentrate on other legal matters and leave issues like these to those directly affected. The plea challenged the Union education ministry's and the National Testing Agency's decision to cancel the UGC-NET exam due to concerns about its integrity.

On June 19, the ministry had ordered the exam's cancellation and referred the matter to the CBI for investigation. Gaur’s petition also requested an immediate stay on the proposed re-examination of the UGC-NET until the CBI concludes its inquiry into the paper leak allegations.

"The petitioner asserts that the decision is not only arbitrary but also unjust, given the recent findings of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

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"The CBI's investigation brings the fact that the evidence suggesting the paper leak is doctored, thus nullifying the grounds on which the cancellation was based," the plea, filed through advocate Rohit Pandey, said.

The petitioner submitted that the "unwarranted" cancellation of the exam has caused significant distress, anxiety, and an unnecessary expenditure of resources for the aspirants who have rigorously prepared for this crucial examination.

(With inputs from PTI)