Delay in CLAT 2015 seat allotment

The Common Law Admission Test (CLAT) has run into a controversy with parents and students raising questions over accuracy of answers to some of the questions and the manner in which the examination was held at various centres on May 10.

In wake of the fresh controversy, the first indicative allotment of seats has been put on hold and a panel to look into the grievances of students and parents has been instituted.

For the first time, CLAT was conducted online this year. Ram Manohar Lohia National Law University (RMLNLU), Lucknow, was the organiser of the test. Over 45,000 candidates appeared in the exam held for admissions to both undergraduate and post graduate programmes at 16 prestigious law schools of the country. The results were declared on May 20.

“There were discrepancies in at least 25 questions. Some of the questions had multiple correct answers while others had wrong answers. We came to know about them only after the organiser of the test released one set of the question papers along with their answer keys,” a candidate, who appeared in the test in Delhi, told Deccan Herald, requesting anonymity.

“The question now is whether they evaluated a student’s performance on the basis of 200 marks or 113 marks. There are possibilities that evaluation was done for 113 questions only as their computers may not have accepted answers of remaining 82 questions,” a senior government official, whose son appeared in the test, pointed out.

He also questioned why Ram Manohar Lohia National Law University uploaded only one set of questions along with answer keys while there were a total of twelve set of question papers made to limit the scope of unfair means by candidates. 

“On the day of examination, students were supposed to reach the venue of the test by 1 pm and enter the examination hall at 3:30 pm. However, students were let in the examination hall and made to sit in front of computers soon after they reached the venue,” some the parents said, questioning the manner in which examination was conducted.

They demanded that another test should be conducted.

Meanwhile, officials said that a committee has been constituted to look into the matter.

“An expert committee has been constituted to look into the matter. Publication of the proposed first indicative allotment list is, therefore, withheld till a final view is taken on these representations,” the organisers said in a statement.

The candidates will be informed about the next date of publication of first indicative list of allotment seats in due course, it added.