The Delhi High Court rejected a petition by unsuccessful civil services aspirants challenging questions in the Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination, 2023, specifically in Paper-II (CSAT). The court upheld the Central Administrative Tribunal’s decision, which had dismissed the aspirants’ claim regarding certain questions in the Civil Service Aptitude Test (CSAT) paper. The bench emphasized that courts cannot interfere in academic matters without arbitrariness, mala fides, or patent illegality.
The petitioners, who did not clear the Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination 2023, argued that some questions exceeded the prescribed syllabus by drawing from Class XI and XII NCERT syllabi. They contended that this led to an unfair selection process. However, the Delhi High Court noted that an Expert Committee report, presented by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC), confirmed that the questions were within the syllabus and did not surpass the Class X level in mathematics.
The court highlighted that it lacked the authority to reassess the questions’ nature or standard, especially when experts had deemed the objections unsustainable. It also pointed out the absence of necessary parties in the case, preventing adverse orders that could affect selected candidates who were not part of the petition. Given that the Civil Services Examination 2023 process had concluded, the court declined to provide futile relief in matters concerning extensive public examinations, affirming the CAT’s decision and dismissing the petition.
