CBSE student Sarthak Sidhant who exposed OSM system seeks extension of re-evaluation deadline: ‘Was busy exposing you’

Sarthak Sidhant, who raised concerns about alleged irregularities in the Central Board of Secondary Education's (CBSE) On-Screen Marking (OSM) system, on Sunday sought an extension of the re-evaluation deadline, which ends today, saying that he had been "busy exposing" the board this week.

“Can u please extend the deadline please because i was busy this week exposing you,” Sidhant said on X.

The CBSE on Friday announced a one-day extension of the deadline for Class 12 students to apply for verification of marks and re-evaluation of answer scripts. Students can now submit their applications until June 7.

The decision was taken after several students reported difficulties in accessing their answer sheets and completing the verification and re-evaluation process through the CBSE's post-result services portal, which became operational on June 2.

"In the interest of students, the CBSE has decided to extend the last date for submission of applications for verification and re-evaluation for the Class 12 board examinations, thereby providing students additional time and support to complete the process," the board wrote on X.

"Students are requested to take note of the revised schedule and submit their applications accordingly," it added.

The CBSE said the deadline, originally set for midnight on June 6, has been extended by 24 hours and will now remain open until midnight on June 7.

Earlier this week, the board launched an online portal allowing students to seek verification of discrepancies found in scanned copies of their answer sheets and to apply for re-evaluation if they were dissatisfied with their board examination results.

Under the verification process, students can flag issues such as missing pages, omitted supplementary sheets, absent maps or graphs, blurred scans, incorrect answer books, or instances where evaluation may have been carried out using a different question paper set.

The board has recently come under scrutiny after several Class 12 students alleged that the scanned answer sheets made available by CBSE did not appear to match their handwriting, sparking concerns over possible errors in the OSM system.

Amid the controversy, the Cabinet Secretariat has constituted a one-member committee to examine the procurement process related to the OSM system used by the CBSE.

Rahul Gandhi meets Sarthak Sidhant

Congress leader and Leader of Opoosition (LoP) Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi lauded 18-year-old Sarthak Sidhant and his associate Nisarga for bringing to light alleged links between the CBSE and service provider COEMPT. Describing their actions as a triumph of young voices, Gandhi said the development represented a setback for the government.

The Congress leader claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi would rather see young people occupied with "making reels" than questioning those in power. However, he said these students chose to challenge the system and, in doing so, uncovered the answers they were seeking.

"Mr. Modi wants our youth to keep making reels, keep frying pakoras, not ask questions, not open their eyes. But these kids asked questions. And they found the answers too. The country's 18-year-old kid outpaced the CBI - this victory of the youth is truly the government's defeat. This is India's real youth power - curious, aware, informed. And remember, the country's future won't fall for any deception," Gandhi said on X.