New Delhi: The Supreme Court refused to direct the reopening of the CBSE Class 12 answer sheet verification and re-evaluation portal. The Court observed that the re-evaluation window had already been made available to all students for a specified period and reopening it again could lead to a large number of fresh claims.
The matter was heard by a Bench led by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant along with Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana. According to reports, the Court found no reason to interfere in the existing process.
What Is The CBSE OSM Controversy
The controversy is linked to CBSE’s On-Screen Marking (OSM) system introduced for evaluating Class 12 answer sheets in 2026. Several students and parents raised concerns about alleged technical problems during the evaluation and post-result process.
Complaints included missing scanned pages, unclear answer sheet images, portal issues, and concerns regarding evaluation accuracy.
CBSE OSM Controversy: Petitioners Raised Concerns Over Evaluation Process
The petition before the Supreme Court challenged the manner in which the OSM system was implemented. The petitioners argued that teachers were not given adequate training before the new digital evaluation system was introduced. They also alleged that technical issues affected the proper assessment of some answer sheets.
According to the plea, some answer sheet pages were allegedly not scanned properly, while in certain cases students claimed that answers or pages may not have been evaluated correctly.
CBSE OSM Controversy: Supreme Court’s Key Observations
During the hearing, the petitioners sought a one-week extension for students to apply for re-evaluation. Their counsel argued that technical glitches and website issues prevented some candidates from submitting applications within the notified period. However, the Supreme Court observed that the correction and re-evaluation window had already been opened for all candidates and students were expected to use the available opportunity. According to the Court, reopening the portal again could create a flood of new claims.
“If You Don’t Use The Bus, You Miss The Bus”
While hearing the matter, the Bench remarked that when a facility is provided for a fixed period, candidates are expected to avail themselves of it within that time. The Court indicated that repeatedly reopening such windows would create administrative difficulties and uncertainty in the admission process.
CBSE’s Stand Before The Court
Representing the authorities, the Solicitor General informed the Court that approximately 1.68 lakh students had successfully applied during the notified re-evaluation period. This figure was cited to show that the portal remained functional for a large number of candidates despite complaints raised by some students.
The Court also noted that admissions for many courses had already progressed, and reopening the process at this stage could affect academic schedules and create further complications.
CBSE OSM Controversy: Earlier Court Proceedings
The legal challenge follows broader concerns regarding the OSM evaluation process. Earlier, courts had sought responses from CBSE and the Central Government regarding complaints connected to the new digital evaluation system. Questions were raised about transparency, scanned answer sheets, and the overall implementation of OSM.
Despite these concerns, the Supreme Court ultimately decided not to order a reopening of the re-evaluation portal.
Impact On Students
Students who successfully applied within the prescribed window will continue through the normal verification and re-evaluation process. However, candidates who missed the deadline are unlikely to receive another opportunity unless CBSE independently decides otherwise.
FAQs
OSM stands for On-Screen Marking, a digital evaluation system introduced by CBSE to assess answer sheets electronically and improve transparency in the examination process.
The Court observed that the re-evaluation window had already been provided to all students for a specified period and reopening it could trigger lakhs of fresh claims.
According to submissions made before the Supreme Court, around 1.68 lakh students successfully applied during the official re-evaluation window.
