The Madras High Court on Monday directed the Bharath University (deemed university) to issue hall ticket to a final year MBBS student through WhatsApp on Tuesday so that she could appear for supplementary examinations on Wednesday at an affiliated college in Puducherry using the mobile phone app along with Aadhaar card or passport to prove her identity. Justice S. Vaidyanathan came up with the idea since the examinations were scheduled to begin on Wednesday and there was just one day in the interregnum for the student to pay the requisite fees. He also directed the university to provide its bank details to the student so that the fee could be paid through National Electronic Funds Transfer (NEFT).
The orders were passed on a writ petition filed by D. Sobica, who alleged that she had been deliberately given fail marks in the final year examinations just because her mother had spearheaded an agitation against Puducherry-based Sri Lakshmi Narayana Institute of Medical Sciences affiliated to Bharath University.
After considering the paucity of time, the judge ordered issuance of hall ticket through e-mail as well as WhatsApp.
She had approached the High Court with a plea to direct the college as well as the university to produce her answer scripts in general medicine, general surgery, obstetrics and gynaecology and paediatrics subjects and to reassess them. She also claimed to have been intentionally given low marks in the practical examinations.
However, the college denied the allegation stoutly and contended that there was no necessity for it to chase the answer script of a particular student and make her fail the examinations. It was also brought to the notice of the court that even in the previous years, the petitioner had cleared a few subjects only in the supplementary examinations.
When the judge wanted to know whether the university would be willing to allow the petitioner to take up supplementary examinations this year too, its vice-chancellor V. Kanagasabai, who was present in the court, agreed to issue a hall ticket forthwith though the last date for making the application had already expired.