Gujarat High Court questions Gujarat Public Service Commission over use of unauthenticated online material in exam paper.
April 3, 2026: The Gujarat High Court has sharply criticised the Gujarat Public Service Commission, calling its affidavit “nothing but contempt” in a case related to a disputed exam question. Justice Nirzar S. Desai observed that the commission failed to clearly respond to earlier directions regarding the process used to verify online material before framing examination questions. The court warned it may initiate contempt proceedings against the commission’s Secretary and Chairman.
The case stems from a petition filed by a candidate who missed qualifying the exam by one mark and challenged the answer to a question based on Arthashastra by Kautilya. The court had earlier directed GPSC to produce the original source, specifically the 1915 English translation of the text. However, the commission informed the bench that it relied on an online version instead of a physical copy.
This raised concerns over the authenticity of sources used in competitive examinations. The court questioned whether there was any policy in place to verify such online material and rejected the commission’s attempt to shift responsibility to subject experts. It has now directed GPSC to submit a detailed affidavit by April 7, clarifying its policy on authentication and the basis for treating the online source as credible.