Madras High Court directs Govt. Advocate to evaluate law student’s answer script

Madras High Court questions transparency of law university's evaluation process, orders revaluation of student's answer script.

The Madras High Court on Wednesday directed a Government Advocate (criminal side) to evaluate the criminology and penology answer script of a law student after doubting whether the Tamil Nadu Dr. Ambedkar Law University adopts a transparent evaluation process.

Justice R.N. Mala also directed the university to clarify whether it provides answer keys to the evaluators and the criteria adopted by the latter for awarding marks, if no such answer keys were provided to them. She also called for data related to the number of students who had failed in semester examinations.

The judge, further, wanted to know the number of students who had applied for revaluation and retotalling in the past three years and the results of such revaluation. She directed the university to explain whether revaluation was permitted even for those who wanted to improve their pass marks.

The university was also ordered to explain whether the copies of answer scripts were made available to the students when they apply for revaluation or should they obtain them only through the Right to Information (RTI) Act of 2005. The varsity was given time till April 16 to respond to the court’s queries.

The interim directions were issued on a writ petition filed by law student M.P. Sunil of the School of Excellence in Law at Perungudi in Chennai. Asserting that he could not have failed in the criminology and penology paper, the petitioner sought a direction to revalue his paper and declare him to have passed it.

Deciding to get his answer script examined by a criminal side legal practitioner, Justice Mala requested State Public Prosecutor Hasan Mohammed Jinnah to suggest a law officer for the purpose of evaluation of the answer script. The SPP suggested the name of Government Advocate (criminal side) C. Pratap.

“In view of the suggestion of the State Public Prosecutor, this court directs Dr. C. Pratap, Government Advocate (criminal side), to evaluate the answer papers of the petitioner and submit his report to this court on or before April 16, 2025,” the judge said and directed the university too to answer the court’s questions by then.