The Delhi High Court has issued notice on a plea challenging the decision to re-conduct the University Grants Commission National Eligibility Test (UGC-NET) 2026 examination for English.
The Bench of Justice Jasmeet Singh sought responses from the Union Government and the National Testing Agency (NTA) and also directed the authorities to take a decision on the refund of examination fees paid by the affected candidates.
The Court also directed the respondents to make a decision concerning the refund of the examination fee for the test in question. The plea has been filed by several candidates who appeared for the UGC-NET June 2026 examination in English. They have challenged a public notice issued by the NTA on August 16 directing the re-conduct of the examination.
UGC-NET is a national-level examination conducted to determine the eligibility of candidates for Assistant Professor positions and other academic opportunities, including Junior Research Fellowship (JRF), depending on the applicable criteria.
The controversy arose after the NTA decided to hold the English examination again. The candidates have questioned the basis of the decision, arguing that the authorities did not disclose the material or reasons that led to the decision to re-conduct the examination.
They have contended that the decision was taken without following the procedure prescribed under the Information Bulletin and is arbitrary, unreasonable and procedurally unfair, apart from violating Article 14 of the Constitution.
The petitioners have sought the quashing of the August 16 public notice directing the re-test. They have also urged the Court to direct the authorities to declare or process the results of the English examination already conducted in accordance with the applicable procedure.
According to the plea, the authorities should first undertake the prescribed answer-key challenge and expert-review process. This could include correcting or revising the answer key, deleting defective questions and conducting consequential re-evaluation wherever required.
In the alternative, the candidates have sought a refund of the examination fee if the Court ultimately upholds the decision to re-conduct the examination. They have submitted that the fee already paid should be refunded without affecting their right to appear in the re-conducted examination without having to pay any additional fee.
Justice Singh issued notice to the Union Government and the NTA and listed the matter for further hearing on October 6.
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