Photo Courtesy: nenow
Imphal: The High Court of Manipur has affirmed the right of candidates to inspect their evaluated answer scripts from the 2016 Manipur Civil Services Combined Competitive Examination. A division bench, featuring Chief Justice M. Sundar and Justice A. Bimol Singh, tossed out an appeal filed by the Manipur Public Service Commission on August 12, 2026. The decision forces the commission to abide by a prior ruling from the Manipur Information Commission.
Three applicants filed RTI requests for their papers. The commission rejected the request. It cited policy decisions from May 4 and October 28, 2020, which bar the distribution of certified copies of descriptive answer scripts. Justice A. Guneshwar Sharma previously ruled that those same policies do not forbid physical inspection. The commission tried to block this via appeal. It leaned on Supreme Court precedents like UPSC v. Angesh Kumar to claim that disclosure risks the integrity of competitive testing.
Applicants argued they would accept inspection even if their original filings sought copies. The commission remains under strict orders. The Manipur Information Commission, through former Chief Information Commissioner Oinam Sunil Singh, had pushed for the access. His order stated, "The State Information Commission, considering the practice adopted by High Court of Manipur in furnishing certified copy of evaluated answer sheets in the examination of Manipur Judicial Services; in order to maintain transparency involved in Civil Services Examination; past practice of MPSC of providing of certified copy of answer scripts for recruitment of Assistant Engineer in the year 2013; and considering pendency of the writ petition challenging policy decision not to furnish answer script before the High Court of Manipur, directed the SPIO of MPSC to allow the three RTI applicants to inspect and examine all their respective evaluated answer scripts for MCSCCE Main Examination, 2016 (2022) within four weeks from the date of the order."
The High Court agrees. The commission has 30 days to comply. Candidates finally get to see their work.
Updated at 17th August 2026 at 9:47am
The legal clash stemmed from a common order issued by the Manipur Information Commission on April 28, 2023, covering three distinct appeal cases. Beyond the core dispute, it surfaced that Oinam Sunil Singh, the former State Chief Information Commissioner who authored the directive, has since transitioned to a new role as the Advisor (Media) to the Chief Minister.
During the appeal proceedings, the MPSC bolstered its defense by citing the Supreme Court case Prashant Ramesh Chakkarwar vs. UPSC alongside their previous reliance on the Angesh Kumar decision. The commission argued these precedents protect the integrity of the testing process. Meanwhile, the High Court clarified that while it upheld the right to physical perusal, the MPSC's specific policy restrictions against providing certified copies of the scripts remain untouched by this judgment.
Comments