New Delhi: Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) aspirants are on an indefinite strike at Jantar Mantar on Sunday demanding a reattempt to appear for the exam. They say that the Covid-19 affected their preparations for the examination so they need an extra attempt to appear for the exams.
Abhishek Anand Sinha, the lead petitioner in the 'Abhishek Anand versus Union of India case' told ANI, "We filed a petition in the Supreme Court and demanded extra attempts as we are not fully prepared."
"Many students who tested positive for Covid-19 have been quarantined and some of them lost their family member due to coronavirus. They cannot study under such circumstances," Sinha noted.
Anand also stressed that many aspirants were working as doctors and during the Covid-19 they worked day and night during that period made it difficult for them to manage time.
Speaking further, Sinha said, "our first petition was filed in September 2020 and the verdict came on 26, October 2020." Sinha informed that in March 2021, students filed the petition and the verdict came in July, wherein Supreme Court expressed its concern over students and said "the government is the one who can decide over this and handed it over to the government", reported ANI.
"We are sitting on infinite protest, we will collectively decide the future course of action with complete compliance with law and order. We all have hope that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah both will listen," Sinha said further to ANI.
Sinha said that their concerns are legitimate and the Supreme Court has certified their concerns as well. "The country and its several areas suffered complete shut down on account of the Covid 19 pandemic and many had to migrate their home towns. Candidates have faced personal, physical, psychological, emotional and financial hindrances," he added.
He also talked about the digital divide as many don't have facilities like laptops, internet connections, bandwidth.
An aspirant Gaurav from Bihar, who had been preparing for five years and said this was his last attempt, but during Covid, he passed away. "I was mentally not prepared. When the result was declared, I could not qualify. Therefore we demand the government to give us a chance," he added.
"We have done small protests time and again, but today students from the entire nation have come here," he stated.