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Court Questions GPSC's Ancient Text Source
17 Mar
Summary
- Court demands original Arthashastra English translation from 1915.
- GPSC submitted an unverified PDF, sparking judicial criticism.
- Exam question's authenticity questioned due to unavailable source.
The Gujarat high court has critically questioned the Gujarat Public Service Commission (GPSC) regarding the source of an examination question based on Kautilya's Arthashastra. Last week, the court directed the GPSC to present the original 1915 English translation of the ancient text.
On Monday, the GPSC failed to produce the physical book, instead offering a PDF whose origin they could not identify. This led Justice Nirzar Desai to reprimand the GPSC for its perceived stubbornness and failure to acknowledge its error.
The court raised serious doubts about the authenticity of exam questions when the primary source material is not readily available. It demanded an explanation from the GPSC secretary on the practice of using unverified digital copies for question formulation.
The examination in question, from the 2025 GPSC recruitment cycle, included a disputed question about the Arthashastra's content and origin. A candidate challenged the official answer key, arguing it contradicted widely accepted information found in school textbooks.
Consequently, the high court has also requested the GPSC to identify the paper setter responsible for the question and to clarify how the authenticity of texts can be verified when physical copies are inaccessible. A response is expected by March 20.
