Union Minister Jitendra Singh moved the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Amendment Bill, 2026, in the Lok Sabha today, with discussion continuing through the day.
The bill seeks to amend the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024, and proposes seven key changes to strengthen anti-paper-leak laws.
Among the proposed changes, state governments and Union Territory administrations would be empowered to designate any Court of Session as a Special Fast Track Court to try offences under the Act.
Proceedings in such courts would be conducted on a day-to-day basis, with trials required to be completed within three months of the chargesheet being filed.
Singh described the legislation as a milestone, noting that the original 2024 law was the first of its kind in independent India to specifically address exam fraud.
The debate began in the afternoon and continued into the evening, with the bill’s passage now expected on Wednesday rather than today.
The debate follows the Union Cabinet’s approval last week of tougher paper-leak penalties, which had proposed a jail term of up to 10 years and a fine of up to Rs 10 crore for those involved in organised examination paper leaks.
The original Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024, was enacted after national outrage over the NEET-UG and UGC-NET paper leaks that year, and this amendment marks the first major revision to that law.
The Lok Sabha’s discussion on the bill formed part of a wider day of parliamentary business during the ongoing Monsoon Session, with the Rajya Sabha separately taking up unrelated legislation on the same day.
Government officials have described the amendment as building on recommendations from an expert committee that reviewed gaps in the 2024 law following continued instances of examination malpractice across states.
The debate in the Lok Sabha took place against the backdrop of continuing protests and disruptions in Parliament over the NEET-UG paper leak controversy, which had dominated much of the Monsoon Session’s proceedings in the preceding days.
(Image: Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs / PIB (GODL-India))
