The Supreme Court on Wednesday (8 July) issued notice to the Union Government and the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) on petitions filed by Class XII students from Gulf and West Asian countries challenging the special assessment scheme adopted after board examinations were disrupted due to the regional conflict. The Court has listed the matter for further hearing on July 14, 2026.
Background of the Case
The petitions were filed by regular Class XII students studying in CBSE-affiliated schools across countries including the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman. They questioned the assessment policy introduced by CBSE on March 27 after several board examinations could not be conducted because of security concerns arising from the regional conflict.
According to the students, their final results were calculated using quarterly, half-yearly and pre-board examination marks. They argued that they were not informed beforehand that these internal assessments would determine their final board results, leading to several students being placed in the compartment category or declared unsuccessful.
The petitions also state that the assessment has affected eligibility for higher education, including admissions under the DASA and CIWG schemes.
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A Bench of Justice K.V. Viswanathan and Justice Alok Aradhe issued notice after hearing the students' grievance that while CBSE has scheduled compartment examinations from July 28, no similar opportunity has been announced for students from Gulf and West Asian countries.
Recording the submissions, the Bench observed,
“The grievance is that they should also be given an opportunity to take the examination.”
The Court directed that a copy of the petitions be served on Solicitor General Tushar Mehta and tagged the matter with a connected petition involving similar issues concerning CBSE students affected by the cancellation of examinations in the region.
The students have sought directions for conducting special fresh and improvement examinations, grant of appropriate moderation or grace marks, and other reliefs to ensure that affected students do not lose admission opportunities because of the special assessment process.
The Supreme Court issued notice to the Centre and CBSE, directed service of the petitions on the Solicitor General, tagged the connected matters, and posted the case for further hearing on July 14, 2026.
Case Details
Case Title: Adithian Rajmohan Nair & Ors. v. Union of India & Ors. (Connected Matters)
Judge: Justice K.V. Viswanathan and Justice Alok Aradhe
Decision Date: July 8, 2026
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