The Supreme Court of India, on Monday, April 29, refused to intervene in a plea seeking postponement of the CA Inter and Final exams which are scheduled to begin on May 2.

Dismissing the plea filed by CA aspirants, the Chief Justice of India (CJI), Justice DY Chandrachud, said, “scheduling of exams pertains to policy decisions and is not a case of court’s interference.”

The CJI said that since 4,36,000 students have enrolled with 591 centres in over 290 areas of the country, any relief at this stage would result in “grave prejudice”.

The bench also included Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice Manoj Misra.

Appearing for the petitioners, Senior Advocate Madhavi Divan highlighted that in several rural areas of the country, candidates are unable to appear for the exams because of the elections, citing issues such as travel restrictions, security concerns, and the necessity for students to vacate hostels.

Divan said that if bulk postponement of the exams is not possible, the students appearing for the CA exams on May 8 and May 14 should be allowed an opt-out option, as the exam dates are overlapping with elections on May 7 and May 13.

However, the Counsel for the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) said that care was taken to ensure that none of the exam dates clash with elections.

The ICAI also noted that adjustments have been made for 3,700 candidates who flagged similar issues, ensuring their exam centres do not coincide with the election dates.

The CJI noted that the exam schedule from May 2 to May 17 does not directly conflict with the election dates on May 7 and May 13, and thus, refused to intervene in the matter.