CBSE Boards : Saudi Student Moves Supreme Court Over Failure To Declare Class XII Improvement Result After Exam Cancellations In Gulf

A student from Saudi Arabia has moved the Supreme Court seeking directions to the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) to declare his Class XII Improvement Examination result, contending that private candidates affected by the cancellation of examinations in West Asian countries due to war-related tensions are entitled to the benefit of CBSE's special assessment scheme.

The petition filed by Pransu Jigarkumar Patel through Advocate Raj Kishor Choudhary challenges CBSE's failure to declare his result despite an assessment scheme framed for students whose examinations in several Gulf countries were cancelled because of the prevailing security situation in the region.

As per the petition, Patel appeared as a private candidate in the 2026 Class XII Improvement Examination from Al Jubail in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He had registered for improvement in Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics, English and Computer Science after appearing in the Class XII examination in 2025.

CBSE cancelled several Class XII examinations in Bahrain, Iran, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE after war-related tensions and military hostilities made it infeasible to conduct them. As a result, Patel was able to take only the Physics and Chemistry examinations, while the Mathematics, English and Computer Science examinations were cancelled.

CBSE issued a notification on March 27, 2026 laying down an “Assessment Scheme for Declaration of Results of Class XII in West Asian Countries”. The scheme covered students whose examinations remained pending because of the cancellations.

Under the scheme, students with pending examinations were to be assessed on the basis of school records. For subjects carrying 80 or 70 theory marks, schools were required to provide students' performance in quarterly examinations, half-yearly examinations and final pre-board examinations, with the best of the three scores being considered for the final result. The scheme also provided that students dissatisfied with the assessment could be given a fresh opportunity to take examinations in the affected subjects if circumstances permitted.

Mathematics, English Core and Computer Science were specifically listed by CBSE as examinations that had not been conducted in the affected countries.

The petition states that the petitioner studied at the International Indian School, Al Jubail, and records of his quarterly, half-yearly and pre-board examinations are available with the school and can be used for assessment under the scheme.

CBSE declared Class XII results on May 13, 2026. The petition states that Patel's result was not declared and his status was shown as “R.L. (Result Later)”. The petition states that no clarification has been provided on whether private candidates appearing for improvement examinations are covered by the assessment scheme.

According to the petition, the delay has affected the petitioner's higher education plans as he applied for admission to the B.Tech (Computer Science and AI) programme at Dhirubhai Ambani University and was required to update his Class XII result status by June 1, 2026. The absence of a declared result has prevented him from completing the admission process and applying to other institutions, the petition states.

The petition contends that CBSE's failure to declare the result despite the assessment scheme is arbitrary, unreasonable and discriminatory, violating Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution. It also contends that by denying the benefit of the assessment scheme to the petitioner he is being subjected to hostile discrimination.

“That the Petitioner is being subjected to hostile discrimination despite being similarly situated to other students affected by cancellation of examinations in West Asian Countries”, the plea states. It further contends that a student cannot be penalised for examinations being cancelled due to war-related circumstances beyond his control.

The petitioner has sought directions to CBSE to declare his result by applying the March 27 assessment scheme and by obtaining his quarterly, half-yearly and pre-board examination records from his school. Alternatively, he has sought a direction for conduct of special examinations in Mathematics, English and Computer Science.

Case no. – Diary No. - 35131/2026

Case Title – Pransu Jigarkumar Patel The Union of India & Ors.