New Delhi | Sarthak Sidhant, a 17-year-old student from Jharkhand affected by the CBSE's online marking system, made a presentation before a parliamentary panel on Tuesday on alleged irregularities in the tendering process for vendor selection for online marking in the Class-12 exams.
Sarthak, who himself appeared in the exams, pointed out the anomalies in the tendering process of the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) to select venders for online marking and put forth a set of questions for the board, sources said.
He also presented a seven-page copy of his findings before the Parliamentary Committee for Education, Women, Children, Youth and Sports, chaired by Congress MP Digvijaya Singh, who heard him patiently and demanded answers from CBSE officials.
Sarthak's presentation was made in the presence of CBSE Chairman Rahul Singh and Secretary, School Education, Sanjay Kumar, along with other officials of the Ministry of Education and the board.
The CBSE handed over a report to the panel members, presenting their side on the problems faced by students, and assured the MPs that the glitches that appeared on its portal have since been rectified and students now have time till June 6 to apply for re-evaluation of their answersheets.
The meeting was held at the Parliament House Annexe amid growing concerns of students on glitches, alleged discrepancies in evaluation and challenges faced by them during the Class 12 post-result verification.
Amid a row over the CBSE's on-screen marking system, the committee had summoned top officials of the board and the Ministry of School Education to discuss the issue of using the online marking system (OSM) in the Class-12 exams and the problems faced by students consequently.
The panel also discussed applying the three-language formula in Classes 9 and 10 with the education ministry officials.
Singh told reporters about Sarthak's presentation.
On whether he was satisfied with the CBSE's replies, the panel chairman said, "That is for the committee to decide."
He did not respond to the three-language formula issue either, saying, "I believe the matter is sub-judice."
"The committee has always been looking at the issues of students and their problems. This is exactly what the committee has done," Singh told reporters when asked about the meeting.
New Delhi | The Congress on Tuesday said the transfer of CBSE chairman Rahul Singh and secretary Himanshu Gupta is an attempt to fix accountability on bureaucrats rather than the political leadership, and asserted that justice demands the "Mantri Pradhan" be sacked.
The opposition party alleged that Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan has been presiding over a "monumentally corrupt, inept, and incompetent ecosystem" that has played havoc with the lives of lakhs of youth.
Earlier in the day, the CBSE chairman and secretary were shunted out of the national educational board in the wake of alleged irregularities in the digital evaluation system for the Class 12 examination process, officials said.
The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has been engulfed in a controversy after some Class 12 students alleged that the scanned copies of their answer sheets uploaded by the board did not match their handwriting, raising concerns over possible answer-sheet mismatch in the On-Screen Marking (OSM) system.
Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh said the CBSE officials have been transferred, but justice requires that the "Mantri Pradhan be sacked".
"The CBSE leadership's unceremonious exit and the constitution of the one-member committee to investigate the procurement of the CBSE’s On Screen Marking (OSM) system prove that irregularities were committed," he said on X.
This is a testament to the ingenuity and skill of Gen Z students, who exposed this scandal online and even brought it to the notice of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Education under the Chairmanship of Digvijaya Singh on Tuesday, Ramesh said.
"Today’s action, clearly timed for after the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Education’s meeting with the CBSE Board, is an attempt to distract and fix accountability on bureaucrats rather than the political leadership," Ramesh said.
It should be remembered that the CBSE chairperson was given a two-year extension by the Cabinet Committee on Appointments as recently as November 2025, he said.
"The Mantri Pradhan has been presiding over a monumentally corrupt, inept, and incompetent ecosystem that has played havoc with the lives of lakhs of youth. He needs to resign immediately," Ramesh said.
Concerns were raised by students and parents over the implementation of the OSM system in the CBSE board examination process.
The board has faced criticism over technical glitches, payment failures and delays in the verification and re-evaluation process, prompting demands for greater transparency and accountability.