High Court of DelhiW.P.(C)/1897/2026

Kartikeya Kahol v. University Grants Commission & ANR.

2026-02-19Hon'Ble Mr. Justice Jasmeet Singh8 pages

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IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI

+ W.P.(C) 1897/2026 & CM APPL. 9200/2026 KARTIKEYA KAHOL .....Petitioner Through:

Mr. Ankit Jain Sr. Adv. with, Mr.

Sidhant Goel Adv. Mr. Mohit Goel Adv.

Deepankar Mishra Adv. Ms. Kratvi Kawdia Adv Mr. Sanjay Vashishtha, Mr. Nishant Nain, Mr.

Vashu Kumar, Advs.

versus UNIVERSITY GRANTS COMMISSION & ANR.

.....Respondents Through:

Mr. Sanjay Khanna SC with Ms.

Pragya Bhushan, Ms. Vilakshana Dayma, Mr.

Saurabh Pandey, Ms. Anshu Kumari, Advs.

CORAM:

HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE JASMEET SINGH

O R D E R

% 19.02.2026 CM APPL. 11668/2026, CM APPL. 11666/2026, CM APPL. 11662/2026, CM APPL. 11652/2026, CM APPL. 11654/2026 Allowed subject to all just exceptions.

The applications stand disposed of.

W.P.(C) 1897/2026 1.

This is a writ petition filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India seeking the following prayers:- "a) issue Writ(s) or order(s) in the nature of mandamus or any other Writ(s), order(s) and direction(s) according to the facts and circumstances of the case; or/and b) Decide the correctness/ incorrectness of the answer key in terms of said Question No(s). 61, 62, 114 & 124 bearing Question ID(s) numbers as 4324498604, 4324498530, 4324498544 & 4324498600 respectively of The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above.

the Question Booklet for the subject History (Subject code - 06) by exercising the jurisdiction/ power of judicial review; or/ and c) Constitute an expert body/ committee to submit a report qua the correctness/ incorrectness of the answer key in terms of said Question No(s). 61, 62, 114 & 124 bearing Question ID(s) numbers as 4324498604, 4324498530, 4324498544 & 4324498600 respectively of the Question Booklet for the subject History (Subject code - 06); or/ and d) Direct the Respondents to rectify the answer key and award marks to the Petitioner in terms of said Question No(s). 61, 62, 114 & 124 bearing Question ID(s) numbers as 4324498604, 4324498530, 4324498544 & 4324498600 respectively of the Question Booklet for the subject History (Subject code - 06), in terms of the decision of this Hon'ble Court with respect to prayer clause (b) & (c) of the instant Writ petition; or/and e) Direct the respondent to re-valuate the examinees in terms of the revised / rectified answer key;..." 2.

The brief facts of the case are that the respondent No.1 issued a notification dated 07.10.2025 inviting application for UGC-NET examination December, 2025 examination for a total of 85 subjects including subject History bearing code "06".

Along with a notification, the respondent No.1 also issued detailed information bulletin.

The said examination is conducted to determine the eligibility of The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above.

Indian Nationals for (i) award of Junior Research Fellowship, (ii) appointment as Assistant Professor and admission to Ph.D. and (iii) admission to Ph.D. only 4.

The petitioner being duly eligible to appear, filled the application form for subject History-06 vide application number 250520365018 and was allotted Roll Number HP090300380. Accordingly, he appeared for the examination which comprised of 150 questions, each being assigned a unique question ID and each carrying 2 marks. There was no provision for negative marking for any incorrect answers. The petitioner received 214 marks out of 300 marks. 5.

The petitioner, after releasing of provisional answer key dated 14.01.2026, objected to 4 questions in total, namely, question Nos. 61, 62, 114 and 124. The said questions read as under:- The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above.

The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above.

As per the respondent No.1, the details of the answers marked by the petitioner are as under:- Qn. No.

Right option Option marked by the petitioner 2nd 1st 2nd 3rd 3rd 2nd 2nd 4th 7.

Mr. Khanna, learned standing counsel for the respondent No.1, states that the respondent No.1 has already constituted an Expert Committee to go into the objections of the petitioner and similarly situated candidates and will evaluate the objections.

However, Mr. Vashishtha, learned counsel for the petitioner, draws my attention to question No. 114, wherein the option No.2 and option No.3 read as under:- The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above.

A perusal of option Nos. 2 and 3 clearly shows that the options are identical and both are correct answers.

10.

In this view of the matter, the petitioner could not have been deprived of his 2 marks for question No. 114 and no Expert Committee is required to evaluate the question No. 114.

11.

Mr. Vashishtha, learned counsel, states that in case the petitioner is awarded 2 marks he would be eligible for JRF Scholarship. 12.

For the said reasons, the petition is allowed and the petitioner shall be awarded 2 marks for question No. 114. The other questions are subject to decision of the Expert Committee.

13.

Needles to state that if 2 marks are added to the score of the petitioner, the necessary consequential reliefs shall enure to the benefit of the petitioner.

14.

The petition is disposed of in the aforesaid terms. CM APPL. 11667/2026, CM APPL. 11665/2026, CM APPL. 11661/2026, CM APPL. 11651/2026, CM APPL. 11653/2026 15.

The present applications filed under Order I Rule 10 read with Section 151 of CPC, 1908 seeking impleadment filed by similarly situated applicants who are seeking correction of their answers. 16.

The applications shall be treated as representations by the respondent No.1 and the respondent No.1 shall constitute an Expert Committee to evaluate these objections. The Expert Committee shall look into the applications, hear the applicants, and thereafter pass an order expeditiously, not later than 4 weeks from today. The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above.

17.

Needless to say, the legal rights of all the parties are left open. 18.

The applications are disposed of in the aforesaid terms. JASMEET SINGH, J FEBRUARY 19, 2026 / (MS) The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above.