‘If You Don’t Use The Bus, You Miss It’: SC Refuses To Reopen CBSE 12th OSM Verification Window

Last Updated:August 25, 2026, 3:50 PM IST

The Supreme Court was hearing a petition challenging the manner in which CBSE introduced the OSM system for evaluating answer sheets.

Supreme Court of India (Image used for representation)

The Supreme Court on Tuesday declined to order the reopening of the CBSE portal for re-evaluation of Class 12 answer sheets for students who have raised concerns over the On-Screen Marking (OSM) system, reported PTI.

CBSE’s OSM system is a digital evaluation process in which teachers assess scanned copies of physical answer sheets on computers instead of checking the original paper scripts.

A bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana said the portal had been opened for all candidates for a specified period and reopening it could lead to a fresh set of claims.

“Why should we direct them to open this window again for you? If you don’t use the bus, you miss the bus. The window was open for everyone for a specified period,” the CJI said.

Appearing for the petitioner, the counsel requested an additional week, arguing that the CBSE website had crashed and several students were unable to submit their applications for on-screen verification.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for CBSE, told the Supreme Court that 1.68 lakh students had successfully applied for on-screen verification during the notified window. He also informed the court that the Delhi High Court had already dismissed a similar challenge.

The Supreme Court was hearing a petition challenging the manner in which CBSE introduced the OSM system for evaluating answer sheets.

The petition alleged that the shift to digital scanning had resulted in several irregularities, including some pages of answer sheets not being scanned, poor-quality or illegible scans, and certain answers or pages not being evaluated.

CBSE had earlier detected around 20 cases where students were shown answer sheets belonging to other candidates after the board introduced its On-Screen Marking (OSM) system this year. More than 13,000 answer sheets also had to be evaluated manually after scanned copies failed to meet the standards required for digital assessment, govt sources told PTI.

Key Questions Answered

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What is the CBSE On-Screen Marking system?

The CBSE On-Screen Marking (OSM) system is a digital evaluation process introduced for Class 12 board exams, where answer sheets are scanned and teachers check them on computer screens. The system is designed for step-by-step marking, with marks automatically calculated by the platform.

Could the CBSE verification window reopen in the future?

The Supreme Court declined to order the reopening of the CBSE verification window, stating that reopening the portal could lead to a large number of new claims and affect the process. The court also noted that the verification window was available for a set period for all students.

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