‘Why should we suffer for CBSE mistake?’: Students protest outside board office

Students and Congress youth leaders on Friday held protests in several parts of the national capital against CBSE board papers being leaked, accusing the board of negligence and demanding immediate action against the guilty.

While some students gathered at Parliament Street in the heart of the city, members of the Congress’ National Students Union of India (NSUI) began marching towards Union HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar’s residence but were stopped.

Student groups and the Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee (DPCC) also demonstrated outside the CBSE headquarters in east Delhi’s Preet Vihar, raising various demands, including an independent investigation.

The agitating students said they were “suffering because of CBSE’s mistakes” as they shouted slogans against the board, ANI reported.

“CBSE is at fault. They were not able to keep the paper safe. Why do we have to suffer due to this?” a student said, according to ANI.

The question paper of Class 12 economics exam, held on March 26, and that of the Class 10 maths exam, conducted on March 28, were leaked on social media hours before the scheduled time.

The board has said all 1.7 million Class 10 students and 500,000 Class 12 students will have to take them again, admitting that the question papers had leaked in advance.

“The leaks have exposed the capture of the highest academic institutions by the exam mafia under the watch of the Modi government as well as the abdication of authority by the HRD minister and the CBSE chairperson,” NSUI leader Neeraj Mishra said.

He added that they would demand the resignations of Javadekar and CBSE chairperson Anita Karwal.

The NSUI’s list of demands includes announcement of the retest of the Class 10 maths and the Class 12 economics papers as early as possible. They are also demanding that students should not be forced to take the retest.

Though the NSUI march was stopped at the Udyog Bhawan metro station, a short distance from Javadekar’s Kushak Road residence, NSUI president Fairoz Khan and DUSU vice president Kunal Sehrawat were taken by Delhi Police to meet the minister.

Javadekar assured them that a decision on the issues raised by them would be taken by the end of the day, Sehrawat told PTI.

The Congress’ Delhi wing, DPCC, shouted slogans outside the CBSE headquarters, demanding an independent investigation into the issue.

Scores of students also demonstrated outside the CBSE headquarters, asking for an early resolution to their problems.

Hundreds of students protested on Thursday as well in New Delhi.

News agency ANI reported on Friday that six students have been detained by the police in Jharkhand’s Chatra on suspicion that they were involved in leaking the question papers.

Delhi Police has said it has questioned at least 34 people, including an economics teacher at a private school in central Delhi and a private coaching centre owner.

According to ANI, the police said most of them either study or teach at coaching centres and that over a dozen mobile phones belonging to them have also been seized.

The teacher of a private coaching centre, located in Rajinder Nagar, was taken into custody on Thursday. The board has named the teacher as one of the accused in the alleged leak of Class 12 economics and Class 10 maths papers.

The issue has turned into a political slugfest between the Congress and the government as the main opposition party blamed the Centre of doing little to check malpractices in the examination system.

Union human resource development minister Prakash Javadekar said people behind the leaks will not be spared as the Congress party demanded his removal and the sacking of board’s chairperson Anita Karwal.

He refuted the charges against the board and said it has a solid system in place and conducts 24 exams annually for 1.2 crore students.

The board is likely to announce the dates for the retest on Monday.

Javadekar has assured that the board will ensure that the difficulty level for the retest of Class 10 mathematics and Class 12 economics paper does not change.