Karnataka HC upholds CBSE punishment for Class 12 student found with mobile phone during exam

The Karnataka high court has restored the punishment against a class 12 student in a Bengaluru school who was found in possession of a mobile phone during the examination.

A division bench comprising Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru and Justice CM Poonacha observed that pursuant to the decision of the Governing Body of CBSE in June 2024, even possession of the mobile phone is stipulated as a Category - 3 offence.

The punishment was cancellation of the current as well as next year’s examination in all subjects.

The student had appeared for class 12 CBSE examinations held between February 17, 2025, and March 11. The examination center was 23 km from his residence and on the first day of the examinations (Physical Education paper), the invigilator noticed a mobile phone in the student's pocket about 25 minutes after the commencement of the examination.

The phone was seized and a fresh question paper and answer script was given to the petitioner which he completed. The student was permitted to write the other papers as well. However, after the conclusion of the examinations, the petitioner was called for an enquiry.

The student claimed that he had arrived late to the examination center and went into the classroom in a hurry, unmindful of the fact that the mobile phone was in his pocket. The enquiry also revealed that there was no material pertaining to the examination in the mobile phone.

The committee recommended the punishment to the petitioner under Category - 3, pursuant to which the CBSE passed the order for cancellation of the current as well as next year’s examination in all subjects for Use of Unfair Means (UFM), in terms of the amended guidelines.

On August 23, 2025, a single bench allowed the petition filed by the student and quashed the communication issued by the CBSE with a direction to declare the results.

The CBSE filed an appeal contending that the guidelines have been communicated to students and in the Admission Card issued for the examinations, which specifically stipulate that "mobile and other communication devices are not allowed inside the examination center".

The division bench noted that the possession of the mobile phone falls under "Unfair Means Category - 3" and the stipulated penalty was the cancellation of current as well as next year's examination in full.

The modified by-laws stated that since mobile phone is an electronic device, which can be used for communicating and it involved a high degree of risk of leakage of question papers and sabotaging of the examination, mobile phone and other electronic devices were placed on equal footage and were put in Category - 3 with severe penalties.

The bench noted that pursuant to the decision of the Governing Body of CBSE in the 139th Meeting held on June 24, 2024, even the possession of the mobile phone has been stipulated as a Category - 3 offence. “…even mere possession of a mobile phone has been mentioned in Category - 3, which prescribes a stringent penalty, which has been done in the present case.

The said aspect having been proposed, discussed and ratified by an expert body, this Court, substituting its opinion with that of the expert body does not arise.

The question of reading down an aspect which has been specifically removed from Category - 1 and inserted in Category - 3 by an expert body is not liable to be interfered with/diluted by this Court in proceedings under Article 226 of the Constitution of India,” the bench said.