CBSE OSM row: Rahul Gandhi attacks Pradhan, questions COEMPT contract

Rahul Gandhi slammed Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over CBSE OSM evaluation, questioning a contract to COEMPT and demanding his sacking. Pradhan defended the process and urged against politicizing the issue affecting students.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday intensified his attack on Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over discrepancies in the CBSE On-Screen Marking (OSM) evaluation process, accusing him of being "complicit" and saying that Prime Minister Narendra Modi should have removed him from office if he truly cared about students.

Gandhi Questions Contract to Controversial Company

In a post on X, Gandhi questioned the awarding of the CBSE OSM contract to COEMPT, a company he claimed was previously embroiled in controversy under its former name, Globarena. "Dharmendra Pradhan ji, you can attack me all you want, but it won't absolve you of your crimes. Nor will it stop me from demanding answers for 18.5 lakh children," Gandhi wrote. He further asked, "Why was the CBSE OSM contract handed to COEMPT - a company already mired in controversy under its old name, Globarena? On whose orders was it done? Why were no background checks done? What is the connection between COEMPT's management and the Modi government?"

Rahul Gandhi alleged that either the government ignored concerns despite conducting checks or failed to carry out due diligence altogether. "Either you ran a background check and went ahead anyway - or you didn't run one at all. Either way, you are complicit," he said.

Targeting the Prime Minister, Gandhi added, "As for responsibility - if the PM cared, he should have sacked you long ago for ruining the futures of lakhs of students." https://x.com/RahulGandhi/status/2059923479169028159

Pradhan Defends Procurement Process

Earlier in the day, Dharmendra Pradhan had responded to Rahul Gandhi's allegations of "massive tampering" in CBSE results and said that the procurement process followed the Government of India norms. "CBSE has already responded to this responsibly. The procurement was done following the Government of India's policies. I repeat, if any irregularities are found, no one will be spared," Pradhan told reporters.

The Education Minister also accused Rahul Gandhi of repeatedly opposing India's technological and scientific advancements. "As I've taken responsibility on behalf of the government for these discrepancies, I would request everyone to refrain from playing politics at this time. Our collective goal should be to ensure that the mental stress of the students doesn't increase," Pradhan said.

CBSE Issues Clarification

Meanwhile, CBSE reiterated that the actual OSM evaluation portal had not been compromised and clarified that the URL circulating on social media referred only to a testing site with sample data. (ANI)

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