Right to appear in exam is part of fundamental right to live with dignity under Article 21: Allahabad High Court

The Allahabad High Court recently observed that the right to appear in an examination is tied to the right to live with dignity under Article 21 of the Constitution, and that a student’s future cannot be jeopardised due to technical lapses of educational authorities [Shreya Pandey v. State of UP]..Justice Vivek Saran made the observation while coming to the aid of Shreya Pandey, a student of Urmila Devi PG College, Prayagraj, who had approached the Court after she was prevented from appearing for her first semester exam due to administrative lapses at the university level. "Appearing in examination is akin to right to live with human dignity enshrined in Article 21 of the Constitution and when the petitioner is not at fault, her future should not be jeopardized only on the technical lapses," the Court's January 12 order said. .The Court proceeded to order the university to which the college was affiliated to conduct a special exam for the petitioner-student. "As an interim measure the University is directed to hold special examination for the petitioner for B.Sc. (Biology) Ist Semester Course for academic session 2025-2026 within a period of two weeks from today and is further directed to publish the result within a reasonable period of time so that the petitioner may pursue her further studies," the Court said. .The petitioner has been pursuing the BSc (Biology) course at the college. However, during her first semester exam, the University failed to issue her an admit card, effectively preventing her from appearing in the exam.Aggrieved, the petitioner submitted a representation on November 27, 2025, to the Vice-Chancellor of the University through the Principal of the College.It was discovered that although the petitioner's application and details existed on the University portal, it remained in “draft form” and was never formally updated, leading to the non-issue of the admit card. The petitioner then approached the High Court seeking relief. .The University, through written instructions signed by the Deputy Registrar (Legal), submitted that since the petitioner’s records could not be updated within time, issuance of an admit card was not possible.The college in which the petitioner was pursuing her studies informed the Court that there were around 30 students whose records had not been updated due to such technical issues. The college had sent a written communication to the University on October 27, 2025, highlighting this issue. Subsequently, records of 25 students were updated, but the University allegedly failed to update the records of the petitioner and four others, despite being duly informed..The Court noted that the university was aware of the issue regarding the non-updation of the petitioner's records, but still failed to take timely corrective steps. The Court further noted that the University had failed to explain to how such technical errors are dealt with once they are brought to its notice.It, therefore, decided to intervene and order the conduct of a special exam for the petitioner as well as the publication of her exam results within a reasonable time, to safeguard her academic future. .The Court further directed the University to file a counter-affidavit detailing the procedure adopted when such technical issues in portal updation are reported. The matter has been listed for further hearing on February 10..Advocate Suraj Pandey appeared for the petitioner.Advocates Pratik Chandra and Vikas Mishra appeared for the respondents (Uttar Pradesh government, the college and the university to which it was affiliated)..[Read Order].Follow Bar and Bench channel on WhatsAppDownload the Bar and Bench Mobile app for instant access to the latest legal news.