On Monday, June 5, Justice Mummineni Sudheer Kumar of the Telangana High Court dismissed multiple writ petitions, including a lunch motion petition, that demanded the postponement of the Group-1 Preliminary examination scheduled for June 11, 2023. According to a report by The New Indian Express, the court deemed these petitions "not maintainable".
During the proceedings, the counsels representing the petitioners argued that the Special Investigation Team (SIT) investigating the Telangana State Public Service Commission (TSPSC) question paper leak had not yet concluded its probe. They further stated that higher officials and staff within the TSPSC, including the chairman, members and spokesperson, should be replaced, as no action had been taken by the state government in this regard.
However, Justice Sudheer Kumar responded, "Don't assume that the TSPSC is conducting Group-1 preliminary examinations without taking precautionary measures."
The Advocate-General, BS Prasad, asserted that the writ petitions lacked grounds for maintainability. He highlighted the extensive measures undertaken by the state and the TSPSC to ensure a fair and transparent examination process.
How many candidates have registered?
As per the report, the Advocate-General informed the court that 3,18,000 candidates had registered for the exam, with over 1,50,000 already downloading their admit cards. The examination was planned to be conducted across 995 locations, and meticulous arrangements had been made.
In response to the question paper leak, 50 additional suspects, including two TSPSC regular workers and two outsourced employees, had been apprehended. An IAS official had been designated as the examination controller, and top officers were overseeing the entire process to ensure transparency and prevent any further question paper leaks.
Considering these arguments and measures, Justice Sudheer Kumar dismissed the lunch motion writ petition and another writ petition filed by an unemployed individual named J Sudhkar from Bollarum, Nalgonda, as unmaintainable. The Group-1 preliminary examination will proceed as scheduled.
