UGC guidelines for final year exams: Will Disaster Management Act have an overriding effect on UGC directive? Supreme Court seeks reply

The Supreme Court today granted time to the University Grants Commission (UGC) to respond to the position taken by the Maharashtra and Delhi governments to cancel university exams amid the COVID-19 pandemic.The reply by UGC is also required to address the question of whether the Disaster Management Act would overrride the UGC notification on guidelines for exams..The Bench of Justices Ashok Bhushan, R Subhash Reddy and MR Shah took up the matter today for hearing. The governments of Maharashtra and Delhi had earlier filed affidavits before the Supreme Court stating that the exams would not be conducted in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. The UGC, on the other hand, maintained that the exams needed to be conducted by September 30..During today's hearing, Advocate Alakh Alok Srivastava, representing a group of 31 students challenging UGC guidelines said that the concern is not the reply of the states, but the legality of the UGC guidelines..Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the UGC, questioned the stand taken by Maharashtra and Delhi to cancel the exams this year. Such a cancellation is contrary to the decision of the UGC which is the only authorised body to confer degrees on students, he said."When UGC is the only body to confer degrees, how can states cancel exams and expect UGC to confer degree?"Mehta thus sought time to respond to the affidavits filed by Maharashtra and Delhi..The Court, however, sought to know whether the provisions of the Disaster Management Act would override the UGC guidelines.."Will the Disaster Management Act have an overriding effect on the UGC directive? You need to reply on this."Supreme Court to SG Tushar Mehta.While granting UGC time to file a reply on the issue, the Court listed the matter for hearing on August 14. Before the hearing concluded for the day, SG Mehta added a rider that the students need to continue studying, as they will not be granted degrees if exams are not conducted."That's the law", Mehta said..On July 31, the Court refused to pass an interim order in a batch of pleas seeking quashing of the UGC guidelines directing universities to conduct final-year examinations by September 30..The Apex Court had asked the Union Home Ministry to clarify its stand on the UGC's July 6 guidelines and the challenges filed by the petitioners..Back then, SG Mehta had said, “Let nobody be under the impression that because the Court is hearing, everything is stayed. Students should continue to prepare.".31 students from 13 states and a Union Territory have pleaded that the final year examinations should be cancelled and the results should be calculated on the basis of internal assessment..31 students from across India move Supreme Court challenging UGC directive to hold Final Year Exams by September 30.In its response to the pleas, UGC informed the Court that it would not alter the July 6 guidelines.In the affidavit, UGC said that the guidelines to conduct the exams were issued to “protect the academic future of the students". The exams were necessary to evaluate the students on “specialized elective courses" they took in the final year, it added..[Breaking] UGC sticks to September end deadline for conduct of final year university exams.A rejoinder to this reply filed by the petitioners stated that the UGC had not considered the floods in Assam, Bihar and north-eastern states, which had killed hundreds of people and badly affected more than 100 districts of these states. It is therefore impossible to conduct online or offline examinations in these places, the petitioners had stated..On August 7, the Maharashtra government informed the Supreme Court that the State Disaster Management Authority on July 13 had resolved to not conduct examinations in the state amid the COVID-19 pandemic.The decision was taken after a majority of University Vice-Chancellors from across the state voted against conducting exams in view of the rising number of COVID-19 cases..[Breaking] Maharashtra govt files affidavit in UGC case before Supreme Court, says state body has decided not to conduct exams amid COVID-19.Soon after this, Government of Delhi informed the Court that Delhi state university exams have been cancelled.The Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi has directed "all Delhi State Universities to cancel all written online and offline semester examinations including final year exams.".[BREAKING] Delhi Government tells Supreme Court that Final Year exams stand cancelled seeing the 'reality of digital divide'.Read Order:.Follow Bar and Bench channel on WhatsAppDownload the Bar and Bench Mobile app for instant access to the latest legal news.