Union Cabinet approves draft bill for stricter punishments in paper leak cases

The Union Cabinet on Friday approved a draft bill to ensure stricter punishments for paper leaks, including a fine of up to Rs 10 crore, hours after Prime Minister Narendra Modi made an announcement to this effect, official sources said.

The Cabinet meeting chaired by the prime minister at the Parliament House complex approved the draft bill to hand stricter punishments to those involved in paper leaks as compared to the existing law, they said.

The bill will amend ‘The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024’, proposing a minimum punishment of five years’ imprisonment for individuals involved in paper leaks and/or a fine.

It proposes a jail term of up to 10 years and a maximum fine of Rs 10 crore in case of organised paper leaks, the sources said.

The present law has provisions for three to five years’ imprisonment for individuals, and five to 10 years’ imprisonment and a minimum fine of Rs 1 crore for those involved in the organised crime of cheating and paper leaks.

The bill is aimed at preventing organised gangs and institutions that indulge in unfair means for monetary gains, while protecting the candidates from its provisions.

The existing law is aimed at curbing leaks, malpractices as well as organised malpractices in recruitment examinations like UPSC, SSC, etc., and entrance tests such as NEET, JEE, and CUET.

Sources said the amended bill is likely to come up in Parliament on Monday, as announced by Prime Minister Modi in a video message issued around midnight on Thursday.

In the message, Modi announced that a bill containing provisions for strong action against paper leaks will be introduced in Parliament next week.

The announcement came in the wake of the ongoing protests by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) demanding the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, accountability for exam irregularities, reforms in the education system, and Rs 1 crore compensation to families of those students who committed suicide after the NEET-UG paper leak in May.

According to the sources, the entire Cabinet is standing behind Pradhan, and the government is unlikely to agree to the opposition’s demand for his resignation.

The opposition is also seeking an apology from the prime minister for the alleged police brutality against the CJP-led protesters, who took out a march to Parliament on July 20 to press their demands.

The sources said the government is also taking up all issues linked to reforms within the National Testing Agency (NTA), which conducts the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (Undergraduate), or NEET-UG, for medical admissions, and is likely to iron them out in a month or two.

'The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024' was the first such law brought by the present government in 2024 after a raging debate over paper leaks.

Even though an education policy brought by former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi talked about bringing a law to check paper leaks and the use of unfair means in examinations, no previous Congress government introduced a law in this regard.