Srinagar, Jan 1: The University of Kashmir Friday said the varsity was constrained to postpone the entrance examination of M.Phil Clinical Psychology paper on Thursday (December 31, 2020) despite repeated pleas to the candidates to sit in the test.
Director of KU’s Directorate of Admissions and Competitive Examinations Prof Farooq A Mir said the M.Phil Clinical Psychology examination was scheduled to be conducted following a requisition for the same from authorities of Government Medical College Srinagar.
The examination was prioritised by the Directorate and scheduled to be held on December 31, 2020 at 11.30am at the Kashmir University Main Campus.
Prof Mir said that 70% of candidates had turned up for the examination and all necessary preparations were made, including deputation of examination staff.
“While the examination was about to start, the University authorities received several phone calls that many stranded candidates were holding protests in Jammu and demanding immediate postponement of the examination owing to disruption of traffic on the Srinagar-Jammu national highway and cancellation of flights due to foggy weather conditions,” he said, adding that at 11.25am, the examination was momentarily halted for merely 15 to 20 minutes over discussions with protesting students to call off their protests as their examination will be conducted afresh separately.
“The Hon’ble Vice-Chancellor instantly convened a meeting of top officers to resolve the matter of protesting candidates, while directing that the examination as scheduled be conducted without any change. While this had been resolved, the candidates in the Examination Hall instantly, without any plausible reason, started raising hue and cry and declined to sit in the examination, and thereafter left the examination hall,” Prof Mir said.
This, he said, happened despite repeated requests to them to sit in the examination and the assurances that their time loss of 15 to 20 minutes will be compensated.
“For more than two hours, the candidates were repeatedly requested by the Kashmir University authorities to sit in the examination, but they continuously refused to do so alleging paper leak—the claim which was baseless and far from facts. The University was eventually forced to postpone the examination after having exhausted all options to persuade the candidates,” Prof Mir said, adding that any other intent or motive being attributed to the postponement of the said examination is hereby refuted as baseless and far from facts.
The new date for the said examination will be notified later, he said.
