MUZAFFARABAD: The Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) High Court on Wednesday issued show cause notices to the chairman and secretary of the region’s Public Service Commission (PSC), directing them to explain the legality and justification of their institution’s policy that bars candidates from accessing their answer sheets and prohibits re-marking of examination scripts.

The notice came in response to a writ petition filed by Muhammad Waqas, a candidate for the post of Assistant Commissioner, who approached the court through his counsel, Barrister Kamran Ilyas Raja, under Article 44 of the AJK Interim Constitution, 1974.

The petitioner argued that the PSC’s refusal to allow candidates to inspect their answer sheets—based on Notification No. PSC/391-400/2018 dated March 9, 2018—amounted to a violation of the constitutionally protected right to information and transparency under Article 4(1)(22).

The said notification terms answer sheets as confidential documents and disallows re-marking under any circumstances.

Mr Waqas submitted that although he was declared “pass” in the written test, he had serious reservations about the marks awarded to him. He claimed that he, along with nearly 700 other candidates, applied for recounting of marks by paying the prescribed fee, but not a single mark was altered in any case—raising grave concerns about the credibility and transparency of the process.

He contended that the absence of a clear marking criterion and lack of access to answer scripts not only undermined fairness but also granted unchecked powers to examiners, with no mechanism of accountability or review.

Justice Sardar Mohammad Ejaz, who took up the matter, fixed August 19 as the next date of hearing.

Published in Dawn, August 7th, 2025