Rahul Gandhi Says: If You Care About Students, Dismiss Dharmendra Pradhan

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday strongly criticized Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over irregularities in the CBSE’s On-Screen Marking (OSM) evaluation process. Accusing him of collusion, Gandhi stated that if Prime Minister Narendra Modi truly cared about students, he should have dismissed Pradhan. In a post on X, Gandhi questioned why the CBSE OSM contract was awarded to COEMPT—a company that had previously been embroiled in controversies while operating under the name Globarena. Rahul Gandhi wrote: “Dharmendra Pradhan ji, you can attack me as much as you like, but that will not absolve you of your crimes. Nor will it stop me from demanding answers on behalf of 18.5 lakh children.” He further asked: “Why was the CBSE OSM contract awarded to COEMPT—a company that is already embroiled in controversies under its previous name, Globarena? On whose orders was this done? Why was a background check not conducted? What is the relationship between COEMPT’s management and the Modi government?” Rahul Gandhi alleged that the government either ignored the concerns even after conducting an inquiry, or failed to conduct a proper investigation in the first place. He stated: “Either you conducted a background check and proceeded anyway—or you did not conduct one at all. In either case, you are guilty.” Addressing the Prime Minister, Gandhi remarked: “Speaking of accountability, if the Prime Minister truly cared, he should have dismissed you long ago for jeopardizing the future of lakhs of students.”