A punching apparatus includes a punch for punching holes in a sheet, a cam member for reciprocally moving the punch in a punching direction, a motor for moving the cam member, a pulse generator for generating pulses that are synchronized with the driving of the motor, and a control unit for applying a brake to the motor to stop the cam member upon counting the pulses of a predetermined number from the pulse generator after the cam member moved by the driving of the motor passes through a reference position.