ICAI seeks time from SC to assess situation to hold CA exams

The ICAI on Thursday (July 2) told the Supreme Court that there may be difficulty in conducting examinations for the professional course of Chartered Accountants exams, as scheduled between July 29 and August 16, due to the current situation arising out of Covid-19 pandemic.

The top court asked the Institute of Chartered Accountants to take its final decision by next week.

Senior advocate Ramji Srinivasan, appearing for the ICAI, submitted before a bench presided over by Justice A M Khanwilkar that there may be operational problems in conducting the exams due to the rising number of Covid-19 cases particularly in States of Maharashtra and others.

The bench, also comprising Justices Dinesh Maheshwari and Sanjiv Khanna, reminded the counsel that the court had previously said that the ground situation was dynamic and not static.

The court asked the ICAI to consult the stakeholders to make an informed decision. About three lakh candidates were expected to appear in the examinations.

It posted the matter for hearing on July 10.

The court was hearing a PIL filed by advocate Alakh Alok Srivastava on behalf of Anubha Shrivastava Sahai, who wanted to set up more exam centres and stay on 'opt-out scheme' and taking up more measures in view of Covid-19 pandemic.

On June 29, the court asked the ICAI to give the candidates an option to choose centres in the middle of examinations and go for an opt-out scheme till the last moment.