The Supreme Court of India has directed Manav Bharti University to correct the marksheets of a former student and verify his academic credentials after discrepancies in university records delayed confirmation of his government appointment and payment of salary. The Court held that an administrative error by the university could not be used to deny verification of his educational qualifications.
The Bench comprising Justices Vikram Nath, Augustine George Masih and Sandeep Mehta allowed the appeal and directed the university to complete the required process within three weeks.
Background
Mohd. Asad Choudhary enrolled in the B.Tech. Civil Engineering course at Manav Bharti University for the 2014 - 2018 academic session. He completed all eight semesters and received his marksheets and degree in October 2018.
He was subsequently appointed as a Sub-Inspector in the State Taxes Department of Jammu and Kashmir. However, his employer repeatedly sought verification of his degree from the university from 2022 onwards. The verification remained pending, affecting the confirmation of his appointment and his salary.
The university confirmed that Choudhary's name appeared in its internal Green Sheet Register but was missing from the admission disclosure list submitted to the Himachal Pradesh Private Educational Institutions Regulatory Commission. It attributed the omission to a clerical error by its previous administration.
A further issue arose when the marks recorded for his seventh and eighth semesters differed between the university's result gazette and its internal records.
After examining the university's affidavit and the documents on record, the Court found that Choudhary's admission, completion of the course and award of the degree were established. It noted that the university itself had acknowledged the omission from the disclosure list as its administrative mistake.
The Court observed:
“Such a lapse cannot be visited with adverse consequences upon the Appellant, nor can it be a ground for withholding the verification of his academic credentials.”
Regarding the discrepancy in semester marks, the Bench noted that both sets of figures recorded a passing result. No respondent disputed that Choudhary had passed the examinations or completed the course.
The Court further observed:
“The discrepancy, thus, does not touch upon the admission of the Appellant, his status as a student at University, or the fact that he passed the course.”
The Bench held that determining the correct marks required verification of existing university records, rather than a separate factual inquiry requiring the student to approach a civil court.
Setting aside the Himachal Pradesh High Court's December 20, 2024 order insofar as it concerned Choudhary, the Supreme Court directed the State of Himachal Pradesh to provide the seventh- and eighth-semester result records available with the verification committee to the university.
The university must issue corrected Detailed Marks Certificates and any consequential documents, and forward its verification report to the student's employer within three weeks.
The Court also stated:
“Upon receipt of such verification, the employer of the Appellant is expected to release all arrears of salary due to the Appellant, along with all consequential benefits, within a further period of four weeks.”
The appeal was allowed, with no order as to costs.
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