PHC summons Peshawar Board officials over student’s zero marks in Biology
The Peshawar High Court has summoned the chairman and controller of examinations of the Peshawar Board over the student’s disputed Biology marks.
A two-member bench comprising Justice Ijaz Anwar and Justice Babar Sattar heard a petition challenging the zero marks awarded to the ninth-grade student.
The case raised serious questions about examination procedures and the possibility of similar mistakes affecting other students who may not have the resources to approach a court.
How the Biology paper error happened
The student’s lawyer, Ameen-ur-Rehman Yousafzai, told the court that the ninth-grade student had received zero marks in the Biology theory examination.
During the hearing, Justice Ijaz Anwar asked how the student had received such a result and what had happened with the examination paper.
The student’s father told the court that the matter had already been resolved.
However, Justice Ijaz Anwar made it clear that resolving the individual case was not enough. “Such matters cannot be resolved this way,” Justice Ijaz Anwar remarked.
A representative of the Peshawar Board then explained how the mistake occurred.
He said examination papers are given computer-generated codes when they are sent to the board for processing.
According to the board’s explanation, the student’s paper was mistakenly assigned another number. This error apparently resulted in the student receiving zero marks for the Biology theory paper.
The explanation raised concerns about the safeguards used by examination authorities to prevent such mistakes.
Judge raises concern for other students
Justice Ijaz Anwar expressed concern that other students might have faced similar problems without being able to challenge them before the courts.
“This child was the son of a lawyer, so the matter came before the court and the mistake was discovered,” the judge remarked.
The judge questioned how many students could have suffered because of similar errors without receiving a chance to correct their results.
“How many other students may have suffered in this way? Not everyone can come to court. You are playing with the future of these children,” Justice Ijaz Anwar said.
The remarks highlighted the wider impact of examination errors on students.
A wrong result can affect a student’s academic progress, admissions and future educational opportunities. For a ninth-grade student, even a single incorrect examination result can create serious problems.
The court therefore appeared concerned not only about the individual student but also about the examination system as a whole.
Court questions repeated examination mistakes
Justice Ijaz Anwar observed that similar matters had repeatedly come before the court.
According to the judge, students sometimes receive fewer marks and examination boards later explain the problem as a mistake.
The observation raised questions about whether existing checking and verification procedures are strong enough to catch errors before results are announced.
The petitioner’s lawyer also provided information about the scale of the rechecking process.
He told the court that around 1.9 million students had applied for rechecking.
He further said students were charged Rs1,500 for rechecking a single examination paper.
The figures brought another issue into focus. Students may have to spend additional money to challenge results when the original mistake was made by an examination authority.
For families with limited financial resources, such costs can make it difficult to challenge an incorrect result.
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PHC orders officials to appear
The Peshawar High Court directed that the student’s Biology examination paper be produced before the court.
The bench also ordered the chairman and controller of examinations of the Peshawar Board to appear personally at the next hearing.
Justice Ijaz Anwar expressed dissatisfaction with what he described as repeated examination mistakes.
“Bring this child’s paper. The chairman of the board and the controller of examinations should also appear in person. You have made this a routine matter. We cannot let it go like this. Action will be taken against those responsible; only then will there be some improvement,” Justice Ijaz Anwar remarked.
The court then summoned both senior board officials and adjourned the hearing.
Their appearance is expected to give the court a clearer explanation of how the paper was incorrectly coded and why the mistake was not detected earlier.
