Pradhan, Rahul Clash Over CBSE Evaluation Row

New Delhi: Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan and Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi on Thursday traded charges over alleged irregularities in the CBSE examination process.

The exchange followed Gandhi’s demand for an independent judicial probe and a Special Investigation Team into what he termed an “entire scam” in the evaluation system. He also alleged that a firm with a controversial background was awarded a contract for digital evaluation of answer scripts.

Responding, Pradhan accused Gandhi of politicising the issue and said he appeared “frustrated” due to electoral setbacks. “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,” he said.

The minister said CBSE’s actions were in line with government procurement policy and assured that any irregularities would be addressed. “As far as this issue is concerned, I take responsibility on behalf of the government for any inconvenience, and I request everyone that this is not the time for politics. I have said this earlier as well. Politics can be done later,” he said.

Gandhi responded, “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.”

In a post on X, he questioned the awarding of the CBSE On-Screen Marking (OSM) contract to a firm he identified as COEMPT, and asked, “On whose orders was it done? Why were no background checks done? What is the connection between COEMPT's management and the Modi government?” He added, “Either you ran a background check and went ahead anyway - or you didn't run one at all. Either way, you are complicit.”

Congress leader Jairam Ramesh also criticised the minister, alleging mismanagement in the education sector.

Earlier, Pradhan said certain issues had emerged in the Class 12 evaluation process and that re-evaluation would be undertaken. He said about 17 lakh students appeared for the examination and that nearly 98 lakh answer scripts, amounting to around 40 crore scanned pages, were evaluated through the OSM system.

Describing OSM as a “progressive and student-centric” system, he said it enhances transparency by allowing students to access scanned copies of their answer sheets.

He acknowledged discrepancies and said corrective measures would be taken to address concerns.

The issue centres on the CBSE’s digital evaluation system, with the government maintaining that safeguards are in place while the opposition has sought an independent probe.