Cancel Class XII CBSE exams, unfair to keep students under pressure till June: Priyanka Gandhi

New Delhi, April 14

Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Wednesday said CBSE board exams must be cancelled for Class XII as has been done for Class X and asserted that keeping the students "under pressure" till June is "unfair".

Her reaction came soon after the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) announced that exams for Class X have been cancelled and those for Class XII have been postponed in view of the surge in COVID-19 cases in the country. The exams were scheduled to be held from May 4.

"The Class XII exams have been postponed and a review of the situation will be done after June 1. Students will be given at least a 15-day notice before the exams are conducted," a Ministry of Education official said.

In her reaction, Priyanka Gandhi said, "Glad the government has finally cancelled the Class X exams. However, a final decision MUST be taken for Class XII too."

"Keeping students under undue pressure until June makes no sense. It's unfair. I urge the government to decide now," the Congress general secretary tweeted.

Reacting to the development, the Congress, in a tweet posted on its official Twitter handle, said, "Well done Modi ji, listening to sound advice from Shri @Rahulgandhi, Smt. @priyankgandhi & the Congress party will go a long way in mending our nation." "It is our democratic duty to work together for the betterment of our people. It's good to see BJP finally put nation over ego," the party said.

Priyanka Gandhi had on Sunday written to Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank seeking cancellation of the CBSE Board exams, saying it will be impossible to ensure the safety of students at crowded exam centres.

In a Facebook post, she said that in the past few days, she heard from many students across the country who raised some important issues related to the examinations amid the second wave of COVID-19.

They say that in the last days leading up to the examinations, there is already pressure of preparation and now there was additional pressure of protection against the virus on them, according to Priyanka Gandhi.

"Along with that, there is also the danger of safety of teachers engaged in exam duty and families of students," the Congress general secretary said.

Many countries have come out with several new methods of assessment in this emergency, she noted.

The decision on the CBSE exams was taken at a high-level meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. PTI

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