Centre transfers CBSE Chairman & Secretary amid OSM row; Congress doubles down with 'cover-up' charge

New Delhi: In the face of mounting pressure over the scandal of the mismanagement of the onscreen marking (OSM) method of the class 12 boards of the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), the Centre on Tuesday transferred two key officials of the Board and instituted a one-person inquiry committee to look into the mess.

A note from Cabinet Secretariat stated that to “inquire into matters relating to procurement of services” the CBSE’s OSM system, the Centre is constituting a committee chaired by S Radha Chauhan, Chairperson of the Capacity Building Commission.

“The chairperson of the Committee is empowered to obtain the assistance of officers from other offices, as required. Secretarial assistance to the Committee will be provided by Capacity Building Commission,” the directive added.

The Committee was also directed to submit its report within a month to the Department of Personnel and Training.

The Center transferred Board Chairman Rahul Singh and secretary Himanshu Gupta and brought in home ministry additional secretary Lokhande Prashant Sitaram in Singh’s place. Gupta was repatriated to his parent cadre with an “extended cooling off” without any opportunity of Central deputation till 2030. He was replaced by Varun Bhardwaj who was the director at the ministry’s department of higher education.

Singh was also the chief executive overseeing the Board’s functioning and administration. Secretary Gupta who also served as the Board’s chief administrative officer, was looking at its legal matters, audit and public relations.

Singh, a 1996-batch IAS officer of the Bihar cadre, took over the role in March 2024. Gupta, who holds a degree in mechanical engineering from IIT, is a 2012-batch IAS officer of the AGMUT cadre, and was appointed at CBSE Secretary in November, 2023 on a four-year tenure.

Congress party leader and Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi said the move was a mere “cover-up” and demanded that education minister Dharmendra Pradhan be sacked. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge called the move an “eyewash” and demanded Pradhan’s dismissal.

“CBSE Chairman - Transferred. CBSE Secretary - Transferred. A one-member “inquiry” committee - Formed. And the real culprit, Dharmendra Pradhan - Safe. Officials removed. Minister spared. This isn’t accountability—it’s a cover-up,” Gandhi posted on X.

He demanded that education minister Dharmendra Pradhan be sacked. “Dismiss the Education Minister and conduct an independent judicial inquiry—these aren’t some one-month-old internal file of the Modi government to be brushed aside just like that. If the Prime Minister cared about the 18.5 million CBSE students—Dharmendra Pradhan ji would have been removed long ago,” he said.