Serious lapses flagged in Kerala LLB paper evaluation; 231 students score higher on revaluation

Thiruvananthapuram: Serious lapses in the evaluation of the University of Kerala’s LLB examination answer papers have come to light, with 231 of the 292 students who applied for revaluation this year securing higher marks.

Student organisations launched protests demanding action against the teachers who conducted the initial evaluation after allegations emerged that a student who wrote a correct answer spanning one-and-a-half pages was awarded zero marks. The extent of the discrepancies in marks came to light after Vice-Chancellor Dr Mohanan Kunnummal directed officials to submit the mark details of all students who improved their scores after revaluation.

“We will examine the issues in the evaluation process and find out whether the problem lies with the initial valuation or the revaluation. We also suspect that there could be a larger racket behind this,” Mohanan Kunnummal said.

All 44 students who applied for revaluation of the fifth-semester examination saw a change in their marks. The variation ranged from 10% to 50%. University regulations stipulate that action should be taken against the teachers who conducted the initial evaluation if there is a difference of more than 20% in marks.

Although a report on the matter was submitted to the then Syndicate, no action was taken. There had been allegations that the matter involved irregularities. The new Syndicate assumed office on July 7.

To ensure transparency in the conduct of LLB examinations, the Syndicate has decided to move the distribution of question papers and the evaluation process entirely online.

It has also decided to introduce double valuation for LLB examinations, similar to the system followed for MBBS examinations, and allow students to inspect their answer scripts. The Vice-Chancellor has directed the Controller of Examinations to preserve the answer scripts that have undergone revaluation.