NEW DELHI: Union education minister
Dharmendra Pradhan on Thursday alleged that Congress leader
Rahul Gandhi appeared frustrated due to continuous electoral defeats and did not stand with India's scientific progress. His remarks come amid the ongoing controversy over alleged discrepancies in the CBSE Class 12 evaluation system.
Speaking to reporters in Delhi, Pradhan said: "Yesterday CBSE gave its response regarding this matter. It is in accordance with the procurement policy of the Government of India. I want to assure everyone that if any irregularities are found, no one will be spared."
"But as far as Rahul Gandhi is concerned, he seems to have reached a different state of mind. Due to continuous electoral defeats, he appears frustrated. He opposed SIR, he used to oppose EVMs, and he opposed Digital India. He does not seem to stand with India’s scientific progress."
The minister further said the government was committed to ensuring that students did not face additional stress due to the controversy.
"As far as this issue is concerned, I myself take responsibility on behalf of the government for any inconvenience, and I request everyone that this is not the time for politics. Politics can be done later. Right now, the most important thing is that the mental stress of these students and examinees should not increase further. We appeal to everyone that no one’s words or behavior should add to their stress," he added.
Separately, Pradhan also chaired a meeting with CBSE officials at the headquarters to address the technical and payment-related issues faced by students during the re-evaluation and verification process.
Speaking after the meeting, the education minister said CBSE had already started the re-evaluation process for Class 12 examinations and highlighted the scale of the ongoing digital evaluation exercise.
"CBSE has begun the revaluation process for the Class 12 examinations. Around 17 lakh students took part, with nearly 98 lakh answer copies — about 40 crore scanned pages in total. For the first time, CBSE has introduced a digital evaluation system, aiming for transparency and student-centric reforms. Students can now access their scanned answer sheets to check marks and raise queries. So far, about 4 lakh students have retrieved their answer sheets, covering nearly 11 lakh copies," Pradhan said.
He further said top institutions and public sector banks had been involved to strengthen the system and address complaints raised by students.
"CBSE has involved top agencies, including IIT Kanpur and IIT Madras, to oversee the technology. Four PSU banks — SBI, Indian Bank, Bank of Baroda, and Canara Bank — have integrated payment gateways to support the process. The government acknowledges some discrepancies, accepts responsibility, and promises corrective measures. Officials will ensure that no student query left unresolved and accountability will be ensured at all levels," he added.
The controversy erupted after several students raised concerns over scanned answer sheets received during the re-evaluation process, alleging that the uploaded copies did not match their handwriting. A Class 12 student had also claimed on social media that he discovered vulnerabilities in a CBSE-linked OSM testing portal.
Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha had accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government of remaining silent over alleged irregularities linked to CBSE's On-Screen Marking (OSM) process and demanded an independent judicial probe into the matter.
However, the Central Board of Secondary Education rejected claims of any breach in the actual evaluation system, clarifying that the portal mentioned online was only an internal testing site containing sample data and not the live platform used for board exam assessment.
Rahul Gandhi had earlier alleged that the company awarded the digital evaluation contract had faced controversy in Telangana in the past and questioned whether proper procedures and background checks were followed before the contract was granted. CBSE, in response, said all procurement norms and General Financial Rules were followed while awarding the contract to Coempt Edutech.
Rahul hits back at Pradhan
Rahul Gandhi responded sharply to Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan over the ongoing CBSE OSM controversy, accusing him of trying to deflect attention from questions linked to the digital evaluation contract and alleged irregularities in the system.
In a post on X, Rahul said: "Dharmendra Pradhan ji, you can attack me all you want but it won’t absolve you of your crimes. Nor will it stop me from demanding answers for 18.5 lakh children."
The Leader of Opposition further questioned the decision to award the CBSE On-Screen Marking (OSM) contract to Coempt Edutech, alleging links to previous controversies involving the company under its earlier name, Globarena.
"Why was the CBSE OSM contract handed to COEMPT - a company already mired in controversy under its old name, Globarena? On whose orders was it done? Why were no background checks done? What is the connection between COEMPT’s management and the Modi government?" Rahul Gandhi asked.
He also accused the education minister of being “complicit” in the controversy and said the Prime Minister should have removed him earlier over repeated examination-related issues.
"Either you ran a background check and went ahead anyway - or you didn’t run one at all. Either way, you are complicit. As for responsibility - if the PM cared, he should have sacked you long ago for ruining the futures of lakhs of students," he added.
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