Key facts
- The Delhi High Court refused to reopen the CBSE's portal for re-evaluation of Class 12 answer sheets.
- The court stated that individual aggrieved students can approach the court directly.
- The court cited potential delays to the overall result declaration process and undergraduate admissions.
- Solicitor General Tushar Mehta informed the court that over 1.67 lakh students had already submitted re-evaluation requests.
- The PIL also sought an inquiry into the on-screen marking system and manual rechecking of answer sheets.
The Delhi High Court on Friday declined to direct the reopening of the Central Board of Secondary Education's (CBSE) portal for re-evaluation of Class 12 answer sheets, a plea brought forth by the National Students' Union of India (NSUI), the student wing of the Congress party. A vacation bench, comprising Justices Neena Bansal Krishna and Madhu Jain, observed that while a week's extension might seem minor to the petitioners, it could lead to a month-long delay in the entire result declaration process. The court indicated that individual students who felt aggrieved by the process were free to approach the court directly.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the authorities, argued against the PIL, stating it was based on general assumptions and that allowing the NSUI's request would adversely affect the undergraduate admissions of over 17 lakh students. He highlighted that the portal, initially open from June 2 to 7, had already seen requests from more than 1.67 lakh students, with 3.8 lakh answer sheets under examination. Mehta also mentioned that the deadline was previously extended by a day, closing on June 7 instead of June 6, and that the system had functioned for those who wished to apply.
Prior to the re-evaluation portal, the CBSE had opened a platform from May 19 to 25 for students to obtain scanned copies of their answer sheets, a process that saw around 4 lakh students requesting over 11 lakh sheets. The NSUI's petition, filed through advocate Rishav Ranjan, also called for an independent inquiry into alleged irregularities in the on-screen marking (OSM) system and requested manual rechecking and physical verification of answer sheets. The NSUI cited a sharp decline in this year's Class 12 results, leading to widespread concern about the fairness and reliability of the OSM system, especially given acknowledged technical issues and discrepancies.
The plea asserted that students affected by scanning defects, mismatch errors, or other technical failures should not suffer due to system deficiencies. It noted that the CBSE itself acknowledged technical glitches with the portal for scanned answer books, with approximately 1,27,146 applications concerning 3,87,399 scanned answer books submitted in a short period, reflecting significant student concern. The NSUI argued that the existing grievance mechanism is inadequate, offering limited digital remedies and no meaningful process for manual verification. The PIL further sought directions for proper safeguards and guidelines for future digital evaluation systems and compensatory higher marks for students with missing or blurred answer scripts. The court has listed the matter for hearing before the roster bench in July.