CIC directed UPSC to disclose CSE Prelims marks to candidates

The Central Information Commission (CIC) directed the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) to provide the marks obtained by a candidate in the Civil Services Exam (CSE) Prelims.

According to CIC, this will help the candidates to prepare well for the next prelims in case they failed to clear the Prelims at first attempt.

Both the Supreme Court and Delhi High Court had earlier directed UPSC to disclose the marks of Prelims. UPSC had however, refused to disclose the same.

This directive was given following a petition filed by an appellant, Shipra Sud, who failed the CSE Prelims 2011. She had filed an application seeking to know the marks obtained by her in the Prelims. But UPSC denied to do so quoting that the "CSE is an integrated three-tier examination system in which each tier leads to the next stage and the examination is said to be complete only when all the three tiers are completed."

UPSC claimed that the provision of the Prelims marks derails the smooth conduct of the further tiers of the examination as the information can be used to cause frivolous complaints and objections, including court cases.

After hearing the Shipra Sud case and going through all directions given by the HC and SC, the CIC finally directed in its order, dated 27 March 2012, that the Prelims marks of CSE should be disclosed.

The CSE is currently known as Civil Services Aptitude Test (CSAT) and comprises three tier-examination format i.e Prelims, Main and Personal Interview. The new decision taken up by CIC generated hope for nearly four lakh aspirants who appear for the CSE Prelims every year.