Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday commended 18-year-old student Sarthak Sidhant and his associate Nisarga Adhikary for revealing what he described as collusion between the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) and the COEMPT. Gandhi shared a video on X of his meeting with Sidhant, who had pointed out alleged irregularities in the tendering process for selecting a vendor for the on-screen marking system (OSM) in Class 12 board exams.
In a Hindi post accompanying the video, Gandhi stated that Sidhant, despite being 18, is unmatched in mindset, courage, and principles. He added that Sidhant and Adhikary achieved what major media houses and investigative journalists could not: exposing the collusion between CBSE and COEMPT to the nation.
Gandhi remarked that an 18-year-old from the country proved faster and sharper than the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), calling this a victory for youths and a defeat for the government. He said, “Modi ji wants our youths to keep making reels and frying pakodas, without asking questions or opening their eyes. But these young men did ask questions, and they found the answers, too.”
The leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha described Sidhant as an example of India’s true youth power—inquisitive, aware, and informed. He asserted that the country’s future will not be led astray. While the government has removed two top CBSE officials following the OSM row, the Congress party has dismissed this as an eyewash and cover-up. Gandhi has demanded that Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan be sacked and an independent judicial inquiry be ordered immediately.
In the video, Gandhi asked Sidhant how he uncovered information about alleged irregularities in the OSM tendering process. Gandhi also praised him for performing the role of investigative journalists. After meeting Sidhant and his family last Tuesday, Gandhi posted pictures and urged Sidhant to stay firm on his principles. Sidhant also made a presentation before a parliamentary panel on Tuesday regarding the alleged irregularities.
The CBSE had replaced the traditional method of checking papers with digital evaluation for Class 12 through the on-screen marking system. A controversy erupted after some Class 12 students alleged that scanned copies of their answer sheets uploaded by the board did not match their handwriting, raising concerns over possible answer-sheet mismatch in the OSM system.
