The principles of natural justice require that a person accused of misconduct be given a reasonable opportunity of meeting the charges levelled against them, including being informed with sufficient particularity and preciseness what the charges are and what the allegations are on which the charges are based.

( 1 ) THESE three writ petitions arise out of the action taken by the Commissioner for Government Examination, Andhra Pradesh, in cancelling the marks obtained by the petitioners in all the subjects at the H. S. C. Public Examination of March 1961. The action was taken on the ground that the three petitioners had indulged in malpractices during the said examination. These three writ petitions can be disposed of by a common judgment as the facts are similar and the question of law that arises is the same. In W. P. No. 523/60 the petitioner is Syed Mashhood Ali and his roll number at the examination was 9790; the petitioner in W. P. No. 527/60 is Alam Ali Khan and his roll number was 9820. The writ petitioners will be referred to hereinafter as the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd petitioner respectively.

( 2 ) THE order by which the punishment was awarded to the petitioner was made on 1-7-1960 and it was in the following terms: "sub : H. S. C. Public Examination March April 1960 - Alleged malpractice by certain candidates - Orders passed. As the candidates whose roll numbers are furnished hereunder had recourse to malpractice during the H. S. C. Examination March/april 1960, the Commissioner for Government Examinations. Andhra Pradesh, Hyderabad, has ordered that their marks in all the subjects at the Public Examination of March/april 1960 should be cancelled and that they should further be debarred from appearing for one year i. e. , two examinations October, 1960 and March 1961. The candidates may be informed accordingly. "the roll number of the three petitioners were among those appended to the above order.

( 3 ) IN these writ petitions the 1st petitioner seeks a writ of certiorari or any other writ to quash the above order and also a writ of mandamus directing the Secretary to the Board of Secondary Education, Government of Andhra Pradesh, to announce his result in the examination. The 2nd petitioner seeks a writ of certiorari or any other appropriate writ to quash the said order, while the 3rd petitioner seeks a writ of mandamus directing the Commissioner for Government Examinations and the Secretary to the Board of Secondary Education to forbear from giving effect to the said order.

( 4 ) THE facts culminating in the impugned order may be briefly stated : The three petitioners were students of the Government Multi-purpose High School, Chanchalguda. They appeared for the School, Chanchalguda. They appeared for the H. S. C. Public Examination held in March/april 1960 and took the examination at the All Saints High School Hyderabad which was one of the centers for the examination. At that centres , 800 candidates of nine different High Schools and also private candidates sat for the examination. The first petitioners name was registered for six compulsory subjects and one optional subjects and he took the examination in all the seven subjects. The examination was held from 31st March to 8/04/1960. The 1st petitioner was seated in Room No. 11 where 22 candidates were examined including the petitioner and the candidates with roll number 9791 was his immediate neighbour.

( 5 ) THE 2nd petitioner took the examination in six compulsory subjects and one optional subject. He was seated in Room No. 13 where 28 candidates were examined and three other candidates with roll number 9837, 9838 and 9841 were his immediate neighbours in the examination hall.

( 6 ) THE 3rd petitioner was seated in another room and his immediate neighbours were candidates bearing roll numbers 9818, 9819 and 9821 to 9825.

( 7 ) FOR the conduct of the examinations a number of invigilators and one Chief Superintendent were appointed. The examinees, however resorted to violence and malpractices on a large scale. Many candidates are said to have taken forbidden materials into the examination hall and the invigilators detected as many as seven such cases then and there. The situation at this centre during the conduct of the examination became uncontrollable, becaus