Academician questions CBSE's 'no information' response to RTI query on AIMPT

Times of India: Chandigarh: Friday, 16 October 2015.

A city-based academician has written to the ministry of human resource and development calling for action over the refund of money submitted to the CBSE to raise objections to questions in the AIPMT exam. The academician, Arvind Goyal, has written to the ministry after the CBSE responded to his RTI query saying it had "no information" and that the query was "not in larger public interest".

Goyal's RTI query to the Central Board of Secondary Education was to do with the Rs 1,000 amount that candidates had to submit for each objection raised to questions in the All India Pre- Medical Test, which was eventually cancelled by the Supreme Court.

CBSE's response to the RTI query had read, "requisite information is not available in the CBSE and is not in larger public interest."

In his letter to the Centre, Goyal asked, "If the students have submitted Rs 1,000 per objection filed through the required channel as mentioned by the CBSE on their website, then how is it possible that there is no record available for the amount of money remitted to CBSE through the objections filed?"

"Does the CBSE mean to say all this money is unaccounted? It is also hard to believe that the CBSE does not have any record of questions for which objections were submitted to it. Any exam which affects nearly 5.75 lakh candidates all over India is definitely an issue in larger public interest. We are unable to understand why the CBSE is denying this information?" he added.

Goyal had also filed another RTI about grace marks given to candidates for a wrong question in AIPMT retest. He had also sought the number of objections received. The CBSE had responded that 112 students had filed objections, and four marks were awarded for this question to the students. CBSE further said the process of refunding money to the students would be initiated shortly.

Goyal said, "The CBSE should upload the final answer key on its website before declaration of the result. This not only will be beneficial academically but also will enable a student to know which of his objections has been accepted and how much money he should expect as refund from the CBSE. Many students had filed objections for questions in the AIPMT held on May 3 which later stood cancelled. The CBSE must refund the money to those students also."