Legal setback for CBSE aspirants as High Court rejects revaluation plea; multi-agency grid mobilized for NEET re-test

NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court has refused to pass emergency orders on a petition seeking an extension for the CBSE Class 12 answer sheet revaluation process. The lawsuit, filed by the National Students’ Union of India (NSUI), claimed that hundreds of students were unable to submit their applications before the deadline and demanded that the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) temporarily reopen its online portal.

Dismissing the plea for immediate intervention, the High Court observed that altering the established schedule would delay the final results for hundreds of thousands of students, ultimately jeopardising their admissions into higher education courses. The bench clarified that students facing genuine grievances are free to approach the CBSE directly for redressal.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta strongly opposed the petition during the hearing, pointing out that any disruption to the evaluation timeline would adversely affect approximately 1.78 million students across the country.

In a parallel development at the Supreme Court, the Central Government announced that it is working on a supportive strategy for students who appeared for their examinations at centres in West Asia.

Owing to the ongoing conflict in the region, the results of the Class 12 improvement examinations could not be released as scheduled. The government indicated that a customised plan is being drafted to safeguard the academic interests of these candidates. This submission was made in response to a petition filed by a student from an examination centre in Saudi Arabia. The apex court has scheduled the next hearing on this matter for the upcoming Friday.

The upcoming NEET-UG re-examination, scheduled for June 21, will be conducted under unprecedented security. The test will run from 2:00 PM to 5:15 PM, granting candidates a total duration of 195 minutes. In a minor administrative change to assist students, the space allocated for rough work within the official test booklet has been increased from two pages to four pages.

An administrative overhaul has been introduced to ensure a completely leak-proof examination process, drawing in specialised personnel from the Indian Air Force (IAF), the Intelligence Bureau (IB), and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). Question papers will be transported to various destination cities using IAF aircraft. Security coordination on the ground will be managed by State Police units working alongside the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) to guard the transit routes from airports to secure bank vaults, and finally to the examination halls.

Cabinet Secretary Dr. T.V. Somanathan and National Testing Agency (NTA) Director General Abhishek Singh held a high-level review meeting to assess the logistical and security preparedness. Following the meeting, the Cabinet Secretary issued a stern warning, stating that any individuals attempting to disrupt the examination or engage in malpractices would face the harshest possible legal consequences.