The Delhi High Court has issued a notice to the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) and the Central government in response to a public interest litigation (PIL) seeking restrictions on who can serve as scribes in civil service examinations. Specifically, the PIL aims to prohibit coaching center faculty and former UPSC aspirants from acting as scribes for candidates with disabilities.
Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia presided over the case, which questions the current practice allowing candidates in the disability quota to utilize scribes who have previously attempted the UPSC exam. The court has called upon the UPSC, the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), and the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities to respond to these concerns.
The PIL was filed by the Deepstambh Foundation, an organization dedicated to providing coaching for civil service aspirants with disabilities. Represented by disability rights advocate Rahul Bajaj, the petition challenges the UPSC’s criteria for scribe qualifications. “We have contested that the scribe’s qualifications should not surpass the minimum requirements of the candidate, which is a graduation,” Bajaj stated to the court.
According to the petition, the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 (RPwD Act), and government guidelines allow disability quota candidates to select their own scribes, provided these helpers are less qualified than the candidates themselves. The petitioner contends that this guideline is being misused, as candidates often choose scribes with prior UPSC exam experience, which could offer them an unfair advantage.
The petition highlights that these “scribe services” are frequently provided by faculty from UPSC coaching centers in Mukherjee Nagar and Old Rajinder Nagar, Delhi, as well as by graduates who have taken the exam before. “This practice undermines the integrity of a competitive examination designed to identify the most capable candidates based on objective criteria,” the plea argues. “It not only disadvantages numerous non-disabled and PwBD candidates who prepare diligently without such assistance but also diminishes public trust in the Civil Services as a merit-based institution.”
The petitioners have urged the court to issue directives preventing candidates with disabilities from employing scribes who have previously appeared for the UPSC exam. Furthermore, it seeks to prohibit the involvement of scribes affiliated with any UPSC coaching centers and to require scribes to attest that they are not linked to such centers.
The next hearing in this case is scheduled for September 16. The PIL has been filed by advocates Rahul Bajaj and Amar Jain.
