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A heated argument erupted in Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) on Thursday (July 2, 2026), after Education Secretary Vineet Joshi sought to prevent questions being posed to the Central Board of Secondary Education, saying the board fell outside the panel’s agenda for the day.
The CBSE has come under fire in recent months for serious discrepancies in on-screen marking for its Class 12 examination and the award of the digital evaluation contract to a questionable firm.
The PAC, which is chaired by senior Congress leader K.C. Venugopal, was meeting to review the implementation of Centrally sponsored welfare schemes of the Union Education Ministry. Mr. Joshi later withdrew his remarks after pushback from Mr. Venugopal and several others, including some BJP MPs.
‘No questions allowed’
The Education Secretary started by delivering a presentation on various schemes, including Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan, PM SHRI and PM POSHAN. Mr. Joshi then said, according to sources, that no questions could be directed to CBSE chairperson Lokhande Prashant Sitaram, who was also present at the meeting, as the Central government does not provide grants or funding to the CBSE.
At this point, according to sources, Mr. Venugopal said that the CBSE could submit written responses later. In response, Mr. Joshi, speaking on behalf of Mr. Sitaram, said that the CBSE would need to consult the Law Ministry before answering the panel’s questions.
Outrage from MPs
The remark led to an uproar. According to sources, Mr. Venugopal said that dismissing the panel’s questions amounted to an insult to Parliament. He was backed by Trinamool Congress MP Kalyan Banerjee, who argued that technical reasons could not be cited to avoid accountability. BJP MPs K. Laxman and Aparajita Sarangi also supported the chairperson, saying that the PAC could take up any issue of public importance. Former Union Minister and BJP MP Anurag Thakur, however, supported Mr. Joshi’s position.
According to sources, the debate continued for 15 to 20 minutes, with Mr. Venugopal eventually stating that the Education Secretary could not dictate what the PAC could or could not discuss. He further said that, as a parent and as a representative of millions of parents across the country, it was essential that their concerns be addressed. Systemic lapses, he said, must be acknowledged and rectified.
When members insisted that the exchange be placed on record, Mr. Joshi withdrew his comments, sources said.
Last audit in 2017
Later, Mr. Venugopal told journalists that one of the committee’s observations concerned an audit of the Education Department.
“The last audit was conducted in 2017, and before that, no performance audit had been conducted for the previous nine years. The committee expressed its disappointment, stating that this was not at all justifiable. Since education is one of the most important sectors, it should be audited regularly and properly,” Mr. Venugopal said.
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