Anupam & Ors vs University Of Delhi Through Its Registrar & Ors

Prathiba M. Singh, J

This hearing has been done by video conferencing.

Pursuant to the order of the ld. Division Bench dated 14th July, 2020, this matter has been listed before this Court. The order of the Ld. Division

Bench reads:

“HEARD THROUGH VIDEO CONFERENCING

CM Nos. 14163/2020, 14164/2020 & 14165/2020 (Exemption)

Allowed, subject to all just exceptions.

W.P. (C) 3946/2020 & CM 14172/2020 (for impleadment)

The present petition has been received on transfer from the Board of a Single Judge. As we understood, the reason for transferring the

matter to this Bench was to examine the delay in conducting the online OBE mode of examination and not the method of evaluation that the

University proposes to adopt for the final year students.

The scope of the other connected petitions before us is not the method of evaluating the final year students. In other words, the online

mode of examinations adopted by the Delhi University has not been assailed in the matters placed before us. The petitioners in the said

petition are aggrieved by the lack of preparedness on the part of the Delhi University for conducting the examinations for the final year

students through the online OBE mode, which aspect we are continuing to examine.

That being the position and in view of the statement made by learned counsel for the petitioners that the prayer of the petitioners herein,

is that no manner of examination be conducted to assess final year students and instead, they be simply evaluated on the basis of their past

performance and the OBE mode of examination be not adopted to assess them, we do not propose to link this petition with the other petitions

pending before us.

The present petition is accordingly detached from the batch of petitions and is directed to be listed before the learned Single Judge for

further proceedings on 20.07.2020.â€​

Thus, the question as to the method of evaluation that the University of Delhi (hereinafter, “DUâ€) proposes to adopt for the final year students is

to be examined by this Court in the light of the prayer in the writ petition which reads:

“a. 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 withdraw its notifications dated 27.06.2020, 30.05.2020 and

14.05.2020.

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.â€​

All the writ petitioners are final year students of various courses in DU. Interventions were also filed by five students from Lady Sri Ram College,

Delhi. This petition was first listed on 6th July 2020 on which date various grievances against the conduct of the Online Open Book Examinations

(hereinafter “OBE examinationsâ€) were placed before the Court. The Court was informed that there are several glitches in the online portal of

DU and considering the diversity of the students in DU who are from all over the country, it may not be feasible for all students to give the OBE

exams due to lack of internet connectivity and computer facilities. DU had however expressed their preparedness to conduct the examination. On the

said date UGC was awaiting the report of the Committee headed by Prof. R .C. Kuhad. The Court had then directed as under:

“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 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.â€​

The UGC, on the same day, issued circular dated 6th July 2020. On 7th July 2020, the Dean (Examinations) of DU appeared before the Court and

 appraised the Court of all the arrangements that have been made for conduct of the OBE examinations. In fact, the OBE examinations were

originally scheduled to commence on 1st July 2020 but were postponed to 10th July 2020. DU categorically informed the Court that there is adequate

preparedness to commence the examinations as scheduled. However, on the said date i.e., 7th July 2020, DU sought an adjournment on the ground

that a meeting is scheduled to be held on the evening of 7th of July 2020 wherein a final decision would be taken as to whether DU would be going

ahead with the examinations from 10th July 2020 or not.

On 8th July 2020, this Court was informed that DU has taken a decision to postpone the conduct of examinations. The reason contained in the

Minutes of Meeting dated 7th July 2020 of DU, for postponement is as under:

“5. The Committee resolves that there is a requirement to carry out a comprehensive review of the arrangements taken into account the

following:

(i) the UGC guidelines issued on 6th July, 2020 ;

(ii) viewpoint expressed during the inter-departmental meeting attended by representatives of DU, UGC and Ministry of HRD that the level

of preparedness should be upgraded further in light of increasing complaints;

The Committee also notes that the number of complaints from students have increased during the course of mock tests in last two days that

are being conducted. It appears to the Committee that there is necessity to spread greater awareness about the OBE examination so that

there are no misgivings in any quarter either about the credibility of the examination process or about its efficacy.

Taking onto account all aspects and circumstances, particularly the developments that have taken place in the last couple of days, it is

decided to postpone the holding of examinations after 15-08-2020.â€​

Since the earlier postponement was subject matter of a writ petition which was pending before the Ld. Division Bench and notice of contempt had

been issued, the present writ along with two other petitions was also directed to be listed before the Ld. Division Bench, as the exams had been

postponed once again.

The matters were then listed before the Ld. Division Bench. The scheduling of the OBE examinations is now being considered therein and various

orders have been passed directing that the examinations would commence from 10th August 2020 and be concluded by 31st August 2020. However,

the Petitioners in the present writ petition had submitted that their substantive challenge to the conduct of OBE examinations ought to be heard. The

matter is accordingly listed today.

At the outset, this Court enquired as to whether any petition is filed or has been entertained on the issue of final year examinations by the Supreme

Court to which Mr. Kurup informed the Court that the UGC circular has been challenged and the matter is likely to be listed on 24th July 2020.

However, Ld. Counsel for the writ petitioners herein submits that the petitioners do not challenge the circular of the UGC. Their challenge is to the

manner of conduct of examinations through OBE method when alternate methods are available even as per the UGC’s guidelines of April 2020

which are still operative.

Mr. Kurup, ld. counsel for the University Grants Commission (hereinafter, “UGCâ€) submits that the UGC guidelines give various options to DU

to hold its examination, including offline (pen & paper), online or blended (online & offline). According to him, the UGC circular does not permit

internal assessment as it affects the credibility of the students who obtain degrees by such assessment. A query is put as to whether it would be

acceptable to the UGC if the time limit for the online examination is extended to 24/48 hours after the question paper is given, as was done by several

international and Indian Universities, owing to the prevalence of disruption in/lack of availability of internet connectivity and adequate hardware for the

students. Ld. counsel submits that the UGC guidelines require the examination to be a timed examination of 2 to 3 hours and the option of 24/48 hours

would not be acceptable.

On behalf of the Petitioners, it is submitted that UGC’s guidelines itself permit conduct of the examination through MCQ/OMR based

examinations, Open Book Examination (hereinafter, “OBEâ€), Open Choice and assignment/presentation-based assessments. Thus, the insistence

of the UGC that an assignment/presentation-based assessment is not permissible and the insistence that the examination has to be a timed offline,

online or blended examination, is contrary to its own guidelines. It is submitted that various Universities, including Dr. A.P.J Abdul Kalam Technical

University, IIT-Bombay and Aligarh Muslim University, have conducted OMR-based/assignment-based examinations. It is also submitted that prima

facie the online OBEs proposed by DU are troublesome and the academic schedule has been completely put to disarray because of these

examinations as even the marksheets of previous semesters whose exams were held in December 2019, have not yet been released. Ld. counsel

submits that if the OBE is now conducted, the issuance of the marksheets, degree-certificate etc. would take a long time and would put the careers of

the Petitioners and similarly situated students in jeopardy. Students who wish to pursue post-graduate courses and seek employment would be affected

irreparably.

On behalf of the intervenors, Mr. Sharma, ld. counsel submits that a survey has been conducted by BA (Psychology) Hons. students of Lady Sri

Ram College, Delhi through a google form on several online platforms. Since the names of all students with their email addresses has been provided,

this survey gives a credible assessment as to the expectation of students. The survey was conducted among 233 students and various questions were

put to them. Results of the survey shows that:

Out of 225 students, 29.8% reside in Delhi, 21.3% are from Uttar Pradesh, 11.1% from Haryana and remaining from Arunachal Pradesh, Assam,

Bihar, Chhatisgarh, Goa, Gujarat etc.

As far as availability of hardware is concerned, more than 100 students responded that they have mobile connections. However, what is important

to note is that less than 50 students had access to a laptop.

Out of 199 students approximately 73% stated that they had not contacted the Common Service Centres (CSCs) at Gram Panchayat level. As per

97.8% of the students out of a total of 180, the CSCs in their area were not aware that they were to provide services free of cost for students

attending the examination. 97.6% of students out of a total of 164 stated that CSCs in their areas do not operate from 7:30 am till 6:30 pm i.e., the time

set for the examinations.

61.2 % of the students i.e., 134 students mentioned that they raised grievances with the Dean (Examination) and the Nodal Officer - Grievance but

never received a response.

Since answer sheets are to be hand-written and names and signatures have to be on the answer sheets, 191 students felt that they could be

discriminated against.

73.2% of the students i.e., 164 students wanted exams to conclude as early as possible in August, 2020 itself in order to move on to their next

academic or professional career.

Students were given various options of format of examinations. The preferences of 219 students are as under:

(i) Assignment/Presentation = 68%

(ii) MCQ/OMR based assessment = 12.8%

(iii) No running timer = 11.4%

A majority of the students were willing to give up the last semester marks and only opt for pass/fail in final semester. The Intervenors have filed

affidavits before this Court swearing to the contents of the survey.

Mr. Sachin Datta, ld. Senior Counsel appearing for DU submits that DU was ready to conduct the examination from 10th July, 2020, however, due

to the advisory issued by the Ministry of Human Resource Development (hereinafter, “MHRDâ€), the OBE examination was postponed. It is

further submitted by him that the circumstances leading to the postponement of the examination have been placed in an affidavit before the ld.

Division Bench, a copy of which would be placed before this Court. He submits that the UGC circular leaves very little options for DU and that DU is

doing its best within these guidelines which insist on the examination being conducted in only three formats.

On behalf of the MHRD, Ms. Ojha submits that the Ministry merely gave an advisory to DU to postpone the examination owing to the various

difficulties, which were being faced and due to lack of preparedness of the University. However, there are no written Minutes of the meeting and the

Advisory was not in writing. She further submits that the same are not binding on DU.

This Court has heard the ld. counsels for the parties and perused the UGC guidelines, both of April, 2020 and July, 2020. A perusal of the

Guidelines issued in April shows that the examination can be conducted in the following manner:

“1. Maintaining the sanctity of academic expectations and integrity of examination process, the universities may adopt alternative and

simplified modes and methods of examinations to complete the process in shorter period of time in compliance with CBCS requirements as

prescribed by UGC from time to time. These may include MCQ/ OMR based examinations, Open Book Examination, Open Choices,

assignment/ presentation-based assessments etc.,

The universities may adopt efficient and innovative modes of examinations by reducing the time from 3 hours to 2 hours assigned to each

examination, if need arises but without compromising the quality, so that the process may be completed in multiple shifts and, at the same

time, sanctity to evaluate the performance of a student is also maintained.â€​

As per the guidelines, the examination which is to be conducted contains two components â€" MODE and FORMAT. Insofar as the mode is

concerned, the same can be online, offline or blended. In respect of format of the examination, the UGC has provided 5 options in the April 2020

guidelines â€" MCQ/OMR based, Open Book examination, Open Choices, Assignment/presentation-based assessments - all of  which appear to be

acceptable to the UGC. Moreover, DU in its brochure itself, as part of its FAQs, clarifies that a 4G connection would be recommended and 2G

connection may not be sufficient for taking the OBE examinations. The relevant portion of the FAQs read as under:

“2. How much internet data do I need in case I use my smart phone?

0.5 GB data in your smart phone is sufficient for downloading question paper and uploading answer sheets for one paper.

I do not have a 4G network connection, can 2G connection work?

No, we would recommend you to have a 4G connection

Can I use my 2G phone for OBE?

No. You can use your friend or family members smart phone or visit CSC or an internet cafe if possible, near to your location.

I cannot afford to pay for an internet cafe and no one in family/friends can give me a smart phone. How can I write my exam?

In such a case, University has made arrangements for you to write your examination at Common Service Centres present across the country.

Details of CSC is available on DU website.â€​

Mr. Dutta vehemently submits that DU has actually undertaken enormous preparations to conduct the OBE examinations and the same can be done

even with a 2G connection.

At this stage, Mr. Tushar Mehta, Ld. Solicitor General submits that he would like to seek instructions from the UGC on the issues raised.

Considering the various submissions that have been made today, including by the ld. Solicitor General, who has appeared for the UGC, the UGC is

directed to consider its guidelines as also the above FAQs and revert as to whether in the final year, the 5 options, viz., MCQ/ OMR based

examinations, Open Book Examination, Open Choices, assignment/ presentation-based assessments as enumerated in paragraph 1 of the April, 2020

guidelines or any other option is available to the Universities including DU. The said decision be also taken especially in the light of the FAQs which

clearly state that a 4G connection is recommended and the same may not be feasible owing to the internet penetration currently available and CSCs

may also not be able to cater to the needs of the students.

Vide order dated 6th July 2020, the UGC had been directed to place on record the report of the Kuhad Committee. Mr. Kurup, ld. counsel submits

that the Kuhad Committee dealt with a large number of issues. Accordingly, let the section of the report which deals with final year examinations be

placed before this Court by the UGC in a sealed cover.

List on 24th July, 2020 at 2:15 pm.