Delhi APP 2026: Last 2 Months Preparation Strategy & Complete Roadmap

The Delhi APP exam will be held on 9 January 2027, from 2 PM to 4 PM, for 140 vacancies. That leaves about 70 days. Once Diwali, the New Year and travel take their share, the real working time is closer to two months.

This blog is based on a live Aashayein Judiciary session on the exam. It covers the pattern, last year's cut off, the laws that carry the most questions and a study plan built for the time that is left. If you have prepared for the Civil Judge Exam or the APO Exam, some of it will feel familiar. A good part of it will not.

One syllabus change is worth knowing at the start. Three new acts have been added: the Trademark Act, the GI law and the Indian Contract Act.

The Exam at a Glance

The written test carries 75 per cent of the final marks. So the OMR paper decides most of your result, and the interview is the smaller part.

The session also mentioned minimum marks of 50, 45 and 40 linked to appearing in the interview. It did not say which category each figure belongs to, so please check the official notification before relying on them.

Also Check: Delhi APP Syllabus 2026

What Last Year's Cut Off Really Asks of You

In the last exam, the unreserved cut off was 300 out of 400. Those 400 marks are 300 for the written test and 100 for the interview.

The session used a simple method to turn this into a safe target. Assume an average interview score of 50 to 60 marks. Some candidates will get 70 or 80 and some will get 40, but the middle sits there. On that basis, a candidate who made the cut off at 300 would have scored about 250 in the written test.

250 marks means 100 correct answers at 2.5 marks each, if no marks are lost to negative marking. A candidate who attempts 115 to 120 questions should aim for 105 to 107 correct answers.

Here is how that works. Say you attempt 115 questions and get 105 right and 10 wrong. The 105 correct answers give 262.5 marks. The 10 wrong answers cost about 8.3 marks. Your net score is close to 254.

The paper has only law subjects and no general knowledge, so 105 correct answers is a realistic goal. Below that, the result depends on how hard the paper is and how many people compete. Around 14,000 to 15,000 students fill this form. Treat 250 as a working estimate from the interview average, not as an official figure.

Where the Questions Come From

The session went through subject-wise counts from the last paper. These are the numbers as discussed.

The Companies Act figure looks like an error in the data. This law usually gives only five to seven questions. Please do not let that number push you into over-studying it.

Going forward, the session expects 20 to 25 questions from the Constitution, about 20 from BNS and about 15 each from BNSS and BSA. Together these four laws give roughly 75 to 80 of the 120 questions. The other 40 or so come from the minor laws. IT Act, CVC, PMLA, the Delhi Special Police Establishment law and Environment law give around five each, depending on the examiner's mood.

The lesson is clear. The more you focus on the four major laws, the better your paper will be. But the minor laws are where you can protect your score, as the subject plan below explains.

Four Ways This Paper Differs from a Judiciary Exam

The exam is conducted by UPSC, and the paper reflects that. Preparing the way you prepare for a state judiciary exam will leave gaps.

Direct section number questions are rare

In a state judiciary paper of 100 questions, 15 to 20 can ask for a section number straight out. Here only two to four appear, and they mostly come in matching form. In the last paper, only one of the 120 questions asked which section applies.

One thing can still show up. The old and new criminal laws are easy to compare, so a matching question that pairs old and new provisions is possible. Know those pairs.

Elimination matters more than recall

Most questions are multi-statement. You get several lines and then options such as 1 and 2, or 2 and 3. Others ask which statement is correct, which is incorrect, or whether both statements hold. The questions are lengthy.

Looking at the past papers, you will feel you know the concept in almost every question. The real test is choosing the right option among close ones. Even a simple topic like the ordinance making power of the President can come with options where only a fine difference separates them. So the exam tests how you eliminate, not just how much you know.

Watch the absolute words: all, only, always, must, never, may, shall. Also watch pairs such as include and inclusive, exclusive, or all of them against some of them. These words are where many marks are lost.

Recent developments count

State judiciary papers still lean on the traditional questions that repeat year after year. UPSC leans on what has changed lately: amendments, recent changes and recent case law. A judgment delivered six months before the paper has been asked before.

Penalty changes under the Environment Act and the sentencing powers under the procedural code have also been asked. Keep up with recent amendments while you revise.

Judgments are asked at overview level

Judgments are not a big part of the paper. The last paper had about 11 such questions, and the session expects 10 to 12 in a paper of 120. They were general. They asked either about judgments that laid down the law or about a judgment at surface level. For each landmark case, know the law it laid down in a line or two. You do not need the detailed facts.

How to Prepare Each Subject

Constitution: the biggest block, and the one that needs outside help

For Fundamental Rights, any good judiciary notes are enough. Polity is a different story. Questions on the Governor, the President, bills in Parliament, Zero Hour, Question Hour, first and second readings, the Election Commission, UPSC and other constitutional bodies are very detailed. You may never have studied them for a judiciary exam.

For the polity part, use M Laxmikanth or another standard UPSC polity book. If you cannot read a full book, focus on the polity and constitution MCQs asked in UPSC and PCS exams. The pattern is the same, and the level is easier than the UPSC polity paper itself. Judiciary books alone will not take you to 23 or 24 correct answers out of 25.

The Aashayein course gives a full conceptual base, including polity. Even so, the session said plainly that lectures alone are not enough. You need heavy MCQ practice on analytical, multi-line questions.

BNS: understand it, then drill the harder MCQs

BNS questions are not very difficult, and the session did not expect deep hypothetical situations. They stay at surface level. What changes is the choice of offences. Public nuisance and offences against the administration of justice, which judiciary papers ask less, get more attention here.

Identify the chapters that suit this style of exam. Then solve MCQs from the optional papers of UPSC or from judiciary papers such as Haryana and Himachal, and take on the tougher ones.

BNSS and BSA: your judiciary notes will do

You do not need to worry here. Questions on BNSS are direct and come straight from the bare act, on topics like bail and interim bail. Procedural law leaves little room to go beyond the bare act, so the bare act is your main resource. BSA can also be prepared from your judiciary notes.

Minor laws: finish these first

Six laws are small enough to prepare completely: Trademark, Contract, GI, CVC, PMLA and the Prevention of Corruption Act. In the Constitution, you may still lose two or three questions however well you read. With these six, the goal is that no question goes wrong.

That is why the session advised finishing them first. Classes for the Trademark Act, GI law and Contract Act will be conducted in the Delhi APP course.

The Companies Act is vast, and you will see only four to five questions. List the 20 most important topics, learn them well and check the initial amendments. The IT Act can be read in full, and Environment law is manageable too.

For extra material, the session pointed to the CVC Vigilance Manual, any concise IT guide and the Trademark Manual for the Trademark Rules.

Plan 70 Days as if You Have 45

This was the most important instruction in the session. Many students see two months and build a schedule that fills all of it. By the end, something is incomplete or the schedule has stretched.

Do the opposite. Aim to finish the entire course in one month, or at most one and a half months. That means 15 December. Only then will you have time to revise two or three times. If you set 1 January as your finish line, it will slide to 5 or 7 January, and revision will not happen.

Limit your resources too. Pick one source for each subject and one MCQ source, and stay with them. Students who keep changing books and MCQ sets until the paper tend to retain very little.

There is no Mains, so you do not need notes. Skip the detailed topics that judiciary Mains papers demand. Your time is better spent solving MCQs and learning to eliminate wrong options.

Checking That You Are on Track

Count correct answers, not attempts. The target is 100 or more correct answers in 120, with 105 as a comfortable mark. Solve Delhi APP previous year papers (PYQ) and take mock tests in the last phase.

Go back to the MCQs you solved in the first month and a half. If you cannot recall why an option was wrong, revise it again. In the minor laws, a wrong answer is a signal to revisit that act, since the aim there is zero errors.

Mistakes That Cost Marks

•        Preparing like a state judiciary candidate, with section numbers and long notes.

•        Planning the syllabus to end on 1 January, which leaves no time to revise.

•        Making notes instead of solving MCQs.

•        Changing books and MCQ sets again and again.

•        Spending days on the Companies Act while the six small laws are still pending.

•        Assuming one course or one batch is enough without heavy MCQ practice.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q1. When is the Delhi APP exam and how many vacancies are there?

The exam is on 9 January 2027, from 2 PM to 4 PM. There are 140 vacancies: 50 unreserved, 14 EWS, 37 OBC, 30 SC and 9 ST.

Q2. What is the exam pattern and marking scheme?

The paper has 120 MCQs of 2.5 marks each, making 300 marks. One third of the marks for a question is cut for each wrong answer, which is 0.83. You get two hours.

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Q3. Is there a Mains exam?

No. After the written test you go straight to the interview. The interview carries 100 marks, and the final result uses a 75:25 ratio between the written test and the interview.

Q4. What was the cut off in the last exam?

The unreserved cut off was 300 out of 400, which combines 300 written marks and 100 interview marks.

Q5. How many questions should I answer correctly?

The session suggests at least 100 correct answers. If you attempt 115 to 120 questions, aim for 105 to 107 correct. This is an estimate based on an average interview score of 50 to 60.

Q6. Which laws carry the most questions?

The Constitution gives 20 to 25 questions, BNS about 20, and BNSS and BSA about 15 each. These four laws account for roughly 75 to 80 questions.

Q7. Which new acts are in the syllabus?

The Trademark Act, the GI law and the Indian Contract Act have been added.

Q8. Are direct section number questions common?

No. Only two to four appear, mostly in matching form. Only one of the 120 questions in the last paper asked for a section.

Q9. Do I need to make notes?

The session advised against it. There is no Mains, so the main task is solving MCQs and learning to eliminate options.

Q10. By when should I finish the syllabus?

Aim for 15 December. That leaves time for two or three revisions and a test series in the last 15 days.

Final Word: Seventy Days Is Enough if You Use Them Well

The Delhi APP exam rewards a clear plan more than long hours. Finish the six minor laws early. Build your polity through a standard UPSC book or UPSC and PCS MCQs. Keep your BNSS and BSA preparation tied to the bare act. Then spend the rest of your time on MCQs, with 15 December as the date to finish and the final days for revision.

Aashayein Judiciary, under the guidance of Nitesh Sir, offers a Delhi APP course with classes for the new Trademark, GI and Contract Act topics, along with a test series. The session also announced a Diwali offer of 40 per cent off on all foundation and detailed courses, valid till 10 November. Please confirm current details before you enrol.

If you want structured Judiciary Coaching, Online Judiciary Coaching, Judiciary Notes and Judiciary Study Material for this exam, join Aashayein Judiciary today and start with the minor laws this week.