Now Reading: India passes bill doubling jail term for exam paper leaks
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India passes bill doubling jail term for exam paper leaks
India's upper house of parliament has passed a bill doubling the maximum prison sentence for exam paper leaks to 10 years and raising the maximum fine to over $1 million (about Rs…
India's upper house of parliament has passed a bill doubling the maximum prison sentence for exam paper leaks to 10 years and raising the maximum fine to over $1 million (about Rs 8.3 crore). The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill, 2024, cleared the Lok Sabha a day earlier and was approved by voice vote in the Rajya Sabha after hours of debate.
The bill now requires President Droupadi Murmu's assent to become law. The legislation comes weeks after youth-led protests, spearheaded by the online 'Cockroach Janta Party' movement, called for sweeping reforms and forced Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan to resign. Prime Minister Narendra Modi's cabinet had approved the stricter punishments last week.
Exam paper leaks remain a recurring problem in national and state-level exams despite repeated government crackdowns. Earlier this year, the federal investigative agency charged 13 people in connection with a leak of the national medical college entrance test, which had fuelled the youth protests that turned violent in New Delhi on July 20.
Indian Opinion Analysis
The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill, 2024, doubles the maximum sentence from five to ten years and raises the fine from Rs 1 crore to over Rs 8.3 crore. This is among the toughest such penalties globally. The rush to pass the bill reflects the political urgency after the Cockroach Janta Party protests forced Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan's resignation. A larger question remains: will harsher punishment alone fix systemic leaks in exams like NEET and UGC-NET, where the National Testing Agency has faced repeated lapses? The law will now go to the President for assent. Watch next for the first high-profile prosecution under the new rules.
Source: aljazeera.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
