In a significant development, the Supreme Court, on Friday, invalidated the decision of the Uttar Pradesh Public Service Commission (UPPSC) to reject the application of Sadaf Imran, a candidate aspiring for the Judicial Service (Junior Division) Examination. The court directed the UPPSC to declare the results of Imran, marking a crucial victory for the petitioner in her pursuit of justice.

The bench, comprising Justices JK Maheshwari and Sudhanshu Dhulia, declared that the rejection of Imran's application by the state commission should not impede the declaration of her result. The UPPSC's order, which initially denied Imran's candidature for the Judicial Service (Junior Division) Main Examination 2022, was set aside by the court. The justices asserted their decision, stating, "Impugned order is set aside. As we direct the respondent state commission to declare the result of the petitioner and send the result to the State of Uttar Pradesh."

The crux of the matter lay in the UPPSC's refusal to permit Sadaf Imran to participate in the Mains Examination based on her alleged failure to submit the hard copies of the Mains Examination application form within the stipulated time frame. Imran, having successfully cleared the preliminary examination, argued that the delay in the submission of hard copies was due to a deficiency in postal services, causing her application to reach the commission one working day late.

The petitioner contended that, despite the online submission and acceptance of her Mains Examination application form by the UPPSC, she was unfairly denied the opportunity to appear in the Mains examination. Her appeal to the UPPSC against the cancellation of her candidature was met with rejection by the commission, prompting Imran to approach the Supreme Court under Article 32 of the Constitution, claiming a violation of her fundamental right to appear in the examination under Article 21.

Notably, the Supreme Court had granted interim relief to Imran on May 22, 2023, directing the UPPSC to provisionally allow her to appear in the Mains examination. Subsequently, Imran successfully cleared the Mains examination, demonstrating the merit of her case. On November 21, 2023, the court instructed the Commission to submit the interview result of the petitioner in a sealed cover for its perusal, and after hearing both parties, the court reserved its judgment on December 12, 2023.

Case: Sadaf Imran v. UPPSC,

W.P.(C) No. 581/2023.