The war of words continued between Rahul Gandhi and Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over the CBSE screen marking controversy, with the Union minister strongly criticizing the Congress leader for alleging manipulation of Class 12 board exam results.
Pradhan said Gandhi’s statements reflected frustration over repeated electoral defeats and accused him of constantly opposing India’s technological and scientific progress.
“He (Rahul Gandhi) seems to have reached a different state of mind. Due to the continuous electoral defeats, he seems disillusioned. He was against SIR, he was against EVMs, he was against Digital India. He does not seem to stand with scientific progress in India…. Politics can be done later. Right now, the most important thing is that the mental pressure of these students and examinees should not increase further,” Pradhan said while talking to reporters.
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Rahul Gandhi responded soon after, saying Pradhan’s “attack” would not stop him from demanding answers on behalf of 18.5 lakh students. Reiterating his questions on the CBSE OSM issue, Gandhi asked why COEMPT was awarded the contract despite the company having previously been embroiled in a controversy under another name.
He claimed that either proper background checks were not conducted or concerns were deliberately ignored.
“You either did a background check and moved forward anyway — or you didn’t do a check at all. Either way, you’re complicit. As for liability — if the prime minister cared, he should have sacked you long ago for ruining the future of thousands of students,” Gandhi said.
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Pradhan admits that there are contradictions
Pradhan said on Thursday that the government acknowledges the discrepancies that occurred during the results, adding that it bears responsibility and promises corrective measures.
“The government acknowledges some discrepancies, accepts responsibility, and promises to take corrective measures. Officials will ensure that no query of students is left unresolved and accountability will be ensured at all levels…”
He also said that the board has started the re-evaluation process for Class 12 exams and has apex agencies, including IIT Kanpur and IIT Madras, to oversee the OSM technology.
