‘Future over administration’: Punjab and Haryana High Court orders special LLB exam after question paper blunder

Findings

• The petitioner is suffering solely due to the irregularity committed by the university.
• If the university decided to conduct a combined examination for students of the old and new courses, the invigilator was required to exercise due diligence while distributing the question papers.
• There should be a mechanism to rectify any error occurring during the conduct of the examination; however, no such corrective exercise was undertaken by the university concerned.

• The petitioner cannot suffer and lose an entire academic year because of the lapse on the part of the university concerned and its functionaries.
• The regulations that govern the university concerned are intended to regulate the examination schedule and should not act as a bar against rectification of their own mistake, especially when the academic career of a student is at stake.

Arguments

• Appearing for the petitioner, advocate Talim Hussain argued that his client is suffering for no fault of her own, as the wrong question paper was supplied to her by the invigilator appointed by the university concerned.
• Hussain further pointed out that since his client was handed the incorrect question paper, she had no option but to attempt the same.
• It was further submitted that the university concerned took no corrective steps despite immediately bringing the error to their notice.
• Hussain also highlighted that his client was prevented from re-appearing in the examination, since the petitioner’s result was declared in October 2025 only after the schedule for the re-appear examination had already been finalised.
• On the contrary, the state’s representative, advocate Akshay Kumar Goel, argued that the said university is strictly governed by its calendar and regulations, which provide that odd semester examinations (regular and reappear) are to be conducted in November, whereas even semester examinations (regular and reappear) are to be conducted in May.
• Goel submitted that the university is precluded from conducting a special examination for the petitioner in January 2026 since the university has to abide by the said regulations.
• It was also pointed out by the state’s counsel that the petitioner mistakenly attempted the question paper of “The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita-II (New)” instead of “Law of Crimes-II (Old)” despite the invigilator carrying both the papers.
• It is further submitted that out of the three students who appeared in the said examination centre, two attempted the paper of Law of Crimes-II, whereas the petitioner alone attempted the paper of The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita-II.
• The said university is directed to conduct a special examination of Law of Crimes-II (Old) for the petitioner in January 2026.

Background

• A LLB student of Panjab University who successfully cleared all semesters did not qualify for one paper called Law of Crimes-II (Old) in her first attempt.
• She applied for re-examination and appeared in the exam in May 2025. However, the invigilator handed her the question paper of “The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita-II (New)” instead of the question paper of “Law of Crimes-II (Old)”.
• She attempted that paper, finding no other alternatives.
• Subsequently, when her result was declared in October 2025, the petitioner was marked as “absent” since she had not attempted the paper on Law of Crimes-II (Old).

• The petitioner also lost the opportunity to re-attempt this paper since the result was declared much after the fixation of the re-appear examination schedule.
• The petitioner made several representations before the Panjab University seeking a special examination, but finally she was informed that the next re-appear examination for Law of Crimes-II (Old) would be held only in May 2026.