JOIN USThe Supreme Court on Friday stayed declaration of results of examinations held in 2017 for selection of staff in government departments and ministries, after the probe reports by the CBI indicated the tests were “tainted”.
A bench of Justices S A Bobe and L Nageswara Rao said the court cannot allow the people to get benefit from the tainted CGL (Combined Graduate Level) Examination 2017 and CHSL (Combined Higher Secondary Level) Examination 2017.
“Upon perusal of the status reports dated 25.7.2018 and 30.8.2018 filed by the CBI, we find that there is sufficient material on record at this stage to raise a presumption that the examinations were tainted,” the bench said.
“Hence, there shall be an injunction restraining the respondents (Union of India) from declaring the results of the examinations until further orders,” the bench said in its order.
The court noted that the aspersions have been cast on several Staff Selection Commission (SSC) officials and the custodian of the examination paper.
The court also pulled up Additional Solicitor General Vikramjit Banerjee, appearing for the CBI, for taking a stand to defend the officials of SSC, a government body which conducts examinations to recruit staff at multiple levels in various ministries and departments.
“It is surprising that you are taking this stand. You are appearing for the CBI and you should have said that the examination must be cancelled. Your status report implicates several people and you are taking a different stand,” the bench said.
Advocates Prashant Bhushan and Govind Jee, appearing for petitioner Shantanu Kumar, claimed that the CBI in its first status report had itself admitted that the custodian of examination paper has leaked the paper. The counsel sought stay on declaration of results.
Lakhs of students appeared in the SSC examination for group C and D category of jobs.