MPSC-ignored candidate gets High Court boost
Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, January 19 2013 :
Based on a petition filed by an unsuccessful candidate in the Manipur Civil Services combined competitive examination 2010, Imphal Bench of Gauhati High Court has reportedly directed Manipur Public Service Commission (MPSC) officials to preserve answer scripts of the said exam as well as to testify before the court on the matter.
It is said that Justice SR Sen issuing the decree yesterday asked MPSC authorities to hand over custody of the answer scripts to the court's register in sealed cover and directed them to state their position in four weeks time.
According to senior advocate N Ibotombi, who appeared on behalf of the unsuccessful candidate namely Hanjabam Bobby sharma the court asked MPSC not to destroy the answer scripts of the written test examination and preserve the same in safe custody.
Ibotombi stated that his client stood fourth position in the overall written test but was left out of the interview on the ground that he (bobby) failed in his qualifying paper General English.
Not satisfied with the Commission ruling him ineligible to appear at the viva voce Bobby, said the advocate, invoked right to information Act and came to know that he secured 135 out of 300 in general English whereas his overall written test tally was 1,343 compared to the MCS 2010 topper securing a total of 1,351 mark.
Noting that under MPSC rules marks attained in the other remaining seven papers would not be evaluated for candidates unable to scale the general English paper and he/she would be counted as unqualified in the written exam, Ibotombi said the qualifying mark for General English was put at 50 percent.
Pointing out that the Commission did not announce the cut-off marks of the General English subject earlier, the senior advocate wondered as to why Bobby's remaining seven papers were evaluated if he had not secured the 50 percent pass mark for General English.
suspecting foul play in the conduct of the examination with regard to raising the pass mark of general English after the examination, Bobby was of the view that the MPSC under its discretionary power raised the cut-off mark to disqualify candidates whose marks in this paper were low and to bring up candidates belonging to influential and powerful people, said the advocate.
Asserting that even if Bobby gets zero in the viva voce test, his total marks would make him eligible to get the post of Manipur Finance Service under OBC category, he said the court was urged to quash the fixing of qualifying mark of 50 percent for general English and facilitate his client appear in a specially arranged viva voce test.
Having heard both sides, the Court asked the MPSC secretary and joint secretary not to destroy the answer scripts of the written test examination held in February last year and preserve the same in safe custody.
MPSC had on September 26 last declared the final list of the exam recommending 138 candidates for the posts of Manipur Civil Service (MCS), Manipur Police Service (MPS), Manipur Finance Service (MFS), Sub-Deputy Collector (SDC) and Section Officer (SO) of Manipur secretariat and Election Officer (EO) of the election department.
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