CJP Protest: What is the Public Examinations Act? 10 Years Imprisonment, ₹10 Million Fine – Anti-Cheating Amendment Bill Explained | Today’s news

Parliament is likely to debate a bill on Monday that seeks to amend the anti-paper leak law as students and the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) continue to stage protests at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar over irregularities in the 2026 NEET examination.

Reports on Friday, citing sources, claimed that a bill seeking to amend the Public Examinations (Prevention of Malpractice) Act, 2024 was passed in a cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the Parliament House complex.

Read also | CJP Protest News LIVE: ‘No concrete decision yet on Pradhan’s resignation’

The aim of the law is to strengthen the law against paper leakage. Sources told ANI that the proposed amendment is likely to be tabled in Parliament on Monday, July 27.

Quick answers to key questions

•5 QUESTIONS

The Public Examinations (Prevention of Malpractice) Act, 2024 is a law aimed at curbing paper leaks and organized cheating in public examinations in various competitive tests including NEET, UPSC and SSC.

The proposed amendment to the Public Examinations Act proposes a minimum jail term of five years with up to ten years and a fine of up to ₹10 lakh for organized paper leaks.

The law was introduced in response to a series of paper leak cases and aims to protect the integrity of public examinations and ensure fair opportunities for all candidates.

The amendment aims to speed up investigations in fast-track courts and mandates timely investigation of cases related to document leaks within three months, thereby strengthening accountability.

Yes, student advocates can drive government reforms and promote accountability in exam processes, which is essential to maintaining the credibility of public exams.

The decision came against the backdrop of ongoing nationwide protests by students and opposition parties over the NEET-UG row, demanding accountability, a comprehensive investigation into the paper leak and stronger safeguards to protect the integrity of public examinations.

What does the new anti-paper leak amendment propose?

The bill, according to news agency PTI, proposes a minimum jail term of five years for those involved in the paper leak and/or fine. It proposes a prison sentence of up to 10 years and a maximum fine ₹10 crore in case of an organized paper leak.

Read also | NEET Row: Govt-CJP fresh talks tomorrow, main demand for Pradhan’s resignation

Sources told the agency that the bill also envisages time-bound investigations of cases and a statutory mandate for trials in fast-track courts, with investigations to be completed within three months.

The current law includes provisions for three to five years’ imprisonment for individuals and five to ten years’ imprisonment and a minimum fine of ₹1 million for those involved in the organized crime of cheating and paper leaks.

Comparison of penalties and fines

CategoryCurrent Law (2024)A new billIndividual punishment3 to 5 years imprisonment Minimum 5 years in prison and/or a finePunishment for organized crime5 to 10 years imprisonment Up to 10 years in prisonFines (organized crime)Minimum fine ₹1 croreMaximum fine ₹10 million crowns

Following the recent NEET paper leak protests, the Delhi Police has formed a Special Task Force (STF) in the crime branch to investigate paper leaks and other offenses related to investigations under the Public Examinations (Prevention of Malpractice) Act, 2024.

Earlier, the Delhi High Court also set up a new fast-track court to hear cases under the Public Examinations (Prevention of Malpractice) Act, 2024 with immediate effect.

What is the Public Examinations (Prevention of Malpractice) Act 2024?

After a series of paper leaks, Parliament passed public examinations (prevention of fraudulent means) Act in 2024 to curb paper leakages, malpractices as well as organized malpractices in recruitment examinations like UPSC, SSC etc. and entrance tests like NEET, JEE and CUET.

It also includes entrance exams conducted by Union Public Service Commission, Staff Selection Commission, Railways, Banking Recruitment Exams and all computer based exams conducted by National Testing Agency.

Read also | CJP calls for public apology to protesting students; Pradhan’s resignation

1. “Any person or persons who resort to unfair means and offenses under this Act shall be punished with imprisonment for a term not less than three years which may extend to five years and with fine which may extend to ten lakh rupees,” the Act states.

2. Under this Act, in case of default in payment of fine, further imprisonment will be imposed in accordance with the provisions of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023.

3. All offenses under this Act are cognizable, non-bailable and non-countable. The Criminal Law (Amendment) Ordinance 1944 was amended in 2024 to include the entry “Offence under the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act 2024”.

4. He says that an offense under this Act is investigated by an officer who is not lower than a Deputy Inspector of Police or a Deputy Commissioner of Police.

5. It empowers the center to refer the investigation to any central investigating agency.

The Public Examinations (Prevention of Malpractice) Bill 2024 was the first such bill introduced by the current government in 2024 after the raging debate over the paper leak.

Reacting to a wide-ranging debate on the Bill, Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh said at the time that the legislation was aimed at ensuring “the merit of our youth and the welfare of our children”.

“There are several cases, but prominently in West Bengal, Diploma in Elementary Education was leaked in November 2022, again in the same state in February, in 2023, English language newspapers besides School Service Commission were also leaked in West Bengal. In December 2022, Rajasthan teacher recruitment scam was exposed, while in February Expressive Teacher, Rajasthan 202 malpractices were also exposed and the exam had to repeat In May 2022, the Rajasthan Police recruitment exam was hit by a scam,” Singh said.

PM Modi promises action, announces bill

In a rare midnight video message on Thursday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that a bill containing provisions for stronger measures against paper leaks would be introduced in Parliament next week.

He promised that “stricter” action would be taken against the paper leak as the Janata Party-led protests over the NEET-UG 2026 paper leak continued.

Read also | Prime Minister Modi said the Cabinet will discuss stricter measures against paper leakage on Friday

Prime Minister Modi confirmed in a video message that the government will announce tougher measures against paper leaks at a union cabinet meeting on Friday, underscoring its commitment to protect the interests of students.

Sources told PTI that the amended bill is likely to come up in Parliament on Monday.

They reportedly said the government is also looking into all issues related to reforms under the National Testing Agency (NTA), which conducts the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (Undergraduate), or NEET-UG, for medical admissions and is likely to resolve them in a month or two.