CAT 2024 Result Controversy: Delhi HC Dismissed Petition, Aspirants Claim Error in VARC Answer Key

CAT 2024 Result Controversy: Delhi HC Dismissed Petition, Aspirants Claim Error in VARC Answer Key

SundararajanUpdated on 07 Jan 2025, 04:39 PM IST

CAT 2024 Result Controversy: The Delhi High Court dismissed the petition challenging the CAT 2024 results. The petitioner claimed that there was an error in the CAT answer key for the English Comprehension section. Despite objections, the CAT final answer key remained unchanged. The Court finds no reason to set aside the CAT results announced on December 19, 2024. The petitioner's request to constitute an expert committee was also rejected. Addressing allegations of errors in the CAT answer key and transparency concerns, the Delhi High Court was announced its verdict in the CAT 2024 result controversy on January 7, 2025.

LiveIIM CAT 2025 Result (OUT) LIVE: MBA admission criteria for IIMs; CAT score weightage, cut-offsDec 26, 2025 | 11:01 PM IST

IIM Kozhikode will retain its three-stage admission process for the MBA (PGP) 2026–28 batch, with CAT 2025 scores carrying a final weightage of 35 percent. The minimum overall CAT cut-off for general category candidates remains at 85 percentile, with sectional qualifying scores required in VARC, DILR, and QA. Shortlisting of candidates will be based on CAT performance, academic record, and personal interview rounds.

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This Story also Contains

  1. Delhi HC Dismissed the CAT 2024 Result Challenging Petition
  2. CAT 2024 Result Controversy: Plea in Delhi HC Over Error in VARC Section in CAT Answer Key
  3. Final CAT 2024 Answer Key
  4. CAT 2024 Results
  5. CAT 2024 Result: Candidates Statistics
CAT 2024 Result Controversy: Delhi HC Dismissed Petition, Aspirants Claim Error in VARC Answer Key
CAT 2024 Result Controversy: Aspirants Claim Error in VARC Answer Key, Delhi HC to Hear Plea Today

Delhi HC Dismissed the CAT 2024 Result Challenging Petition

A CAT 2024 aspirant has approached the Delhi High Court seeking annulment of the CAT 2024 result, alleging an error in the official CAT answer key 2024. According to a Bar and Bench report, Aditya Kumar Mallick, who appeared for the CAT 2024 exam on November 24, 2024, objected to the provisional answer key, citing an error in a question from the VARC section of the CAT 2024 question paper. He filed a petition in the Delhi High Court challenging the CAT 2024 result. A bench comprising Justice Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav took up the case on December 24 and 31. The next hearing of the CAT result controversy case has been adjourned on January 3, 2025.

CAT 2024 Result Controversy: Latest Update

  • Delhi HC dismissed the petition of challenging CAT 2024 result.
  • The Delhi High Court has pronounce its judgment on January 7, 2025, on the petition challenging the Common Entrance Test (CAT) 2024 results.
  • The Delhi High Court reserved the versict on a petition challenging the CAT result of CAT 2024 for admission into top MBA colleges.
  • Justice Tara Vitasta Hanju has reserved all the judgement in the plea moved by the petitioner (Aditya Kumar Mallick), who is aggrieved with an incorrect answer to Question No. 18 in VARC section, thereby affecting the CAT exam result.
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CAT 2024 Result Controversy: Plea in Delhi HC Over Error in VARC Section in CAT Answer Key

The CAT 2024 exam was conducted on November 24, 2024 and 2.93 lakh candidates appeared in it. The official CAT 2024 answer key was released on December 3, and the objection window opened till December 5, 2024. A total of 405 objections were received, and on scrutiny, none were found to be valid. Maximum objections were raised in the VARC category (371) in all three exam slots, but none of them were valid. The final CAT 2024 answer key was released on December 16, 2024, three days before the CAT 2024 result declaration.

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The petitioner claims that the final CAT 2024 answer key was released without any change in the provisional answer key. He also said that his objection is supported by renowned experts and faculty members of various CAT coaching centers.

The candidate highlighted that he has submitted analysis of CAT 2024 experts and faculty members of various coaching centers in support of his objections to the CAT answer key 2024. Additionally, a total of 272 complaints were raised by candidates against the VARC section of the CAT 2024 exam. The MBA aspirant argued that the CAT result 2024 was expected in the second week of January 2025, but it was announced in haste on December 19, without any response from the examination authorities regarding the challenges against the answer key.

Aditya Kumar Mallick argues that this early notification casts doubt on whether sufficient time was allotted to address the objections raised by the candidates. He argues that the decision to release the results so quickly 'raises concerns' about the thoroughness of the review process.

Final CAT 2024 Answer Key

Check below the decision shared by IIM Calcutta after considering the candidates' objections against the CAT 2024 answer key.

Section Name

Assessment Shift

Number of Objections

Decision

Data Interpretation and Logical Reasoning (DILR)

Shift 1

5

No change

Shift 2

9

Shift 3

7

Quantitative Ability (QA)

Shift 1

11

No change

Shift 2

1

Shift 3

1

Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension (VARC)

Shift 1

31

No change

Shift 2

272

Shift 3

68


CAT 2024 Results

The candidate has further demanded that the CAT 2024 results be canceled and a committee appointed to find the correct answer. According to the CAT 2024 result notice, a total of 14 students got 100 percentile, 29 students got 99.99 percentile, and 30 students secured 99.98 percentile.

Out of the 3.29 lakh registered eligible candidates, 1.19 lakh were female, 2.10 lakh were male, and 14 were transgender candidates. Of the 2.93 lakh candidates who appeared, 1.07 lakh were female, 1.86 lakh were male, and 9 were transgender candidates.

Also Read: CAT 2024 toppers list

CAT 2024 Result: Candidates Statistics

Category

Registered Percentage

Appeared Percentage

General

67.53%

67.20%

EWS

5.09%

4.80%

NC-OBC

17.5%

16.91%

SC

8.51%

8.08%

ST

2.25%

2.12%

PwD (Across Categories)

0.44%

0.41%

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Questions related to CAT

On Question asked by student community

Have a question related to CAT ?

With 84.91 percentile in CAT (General, male, no work experience), top colleges like IIMs, IITs, FMS, MDI, etc. are not possible. You may get calls from private institutes such as IMT Nagpur/Hyderabad, IMI Bhubaneswar, XIME, SDMIMD, Welingkar (some programs) and similar colleges. Universities like Amity or LPU are also options.

It’s better to choose carefully, as placements and ROI may be average. Reattempting CAT or trying XAT/CMAT could improve options.

Hello,

With a CAT percentile of 88.77 and a strong CGPA of 9.0, you are in a competitive range for newer IIMs (like IIM Amritsar, IIM Bodh Gaya, IIM Sirmaur, IIM Nagpur) and several top non-IIM B-schools such as TAPMI, BIM Trichy, Great Lakes, IMI Delhi, FORE School of Management, and KJ Somaiya. You may not reach the older IIMs (Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Calcutta, etc.) since they usually require 98+ percentile, but you have excellent chances at mid-tier and emerging institutes.

For more details access mentioned link below:

https://bschool.careers360.com/articles/cat-cutoff-2025-category-wise-iims-iits-top-mba-colleges-cutoff

Hope it helps.

Hello

The expected cutoff for the JAP (Joint Admission Process) is around 90 to 95th percentile, with a minimum sectional cutoff of around 75 percentile in Quantitative Ability. You have scored 82.2% which is very low; that's why you are unlikely to meet the minimum criteria for the JAP IIMs in the general Category.

I hope this information helps you.

Thank you.

Hello,

Here is your IIM Cutoff for Gen/OBC/SC/ST, CS Score Cut Off. I am providing you the link. Kindly open and check it out. From here you can get all the details.

https://bschool.careers360.com/articles/cat-2025-cut-off-live-updates-iim-blacki-expected-cat-cs-score-cut-off-iim-cat-call-cut-off-latest-updates

I hope it will help you.

Thank you.


With a CAT score of around 80 percentile and about 2 years of work experience, getting a call from the top IIMs (IIM Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Calcutta, Lucknow, Kozhikode, Indore) is extremely difficult, as their cutoff percentiles are usually much higher, even for reserved categories. These institutes typically shortlist candidates above 95–99 percentile depending on category, academic profile, and diversity factors.

However, you may still have some chances at a few of the newer or baby IIMs, especially if you belong to a reserved category (SC/ST/OBC/EWS) and have a decent academic background. IIMs such as IIM Jammu, IIM Bodh Gaya, IIM Sirmaur, IIM Sambalpur, IIM Nagaland, IIM Amritsar, and IIM Vizag have historically called candidates in the 75–85 percentile range for certain categories. Your 2 years of work experience can also work in your favour, as most IIMs give weightage to professional experience during shortlisting and final selection.

That said, selection does not depend on CAT percentile alone. Factors like your 10th and 12th marks, graduation score, academic consistency, gender and academic diversity, work experience quality, and performance in the personal interview play a very important role. Even with an 80 percentile, a strong interview and profile can improve your chances at newer IIMs.

You should also keep strong non-IIM options open. At this percentile, good colleges like newer IIT MBA programs, some NITs, and reputed private B-schools can offer better and more realistic opportunities. Applying broadly and preparing seriously for the interview stage is very important.

In summary, while top IIMs are unlikely at 80 percentile, you may still have a realistic chance at some of the newer IIMs depending on your category and overall profile.