Investigation into paper leak cases to be completed within two months: Bill

A bill to amend a two-year-old anti-paper leak law, which proposes to set up fast-track courts in every state for speedy trials of accused, is set for introduction in the Lok Sabha on Monday.

According to the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Amendment Bill, 2026, investigations into paper leak cases are to be completed within two months.

The bill circulated to the Lok Sabha members ahead of its introduction says that individuals involved in paper leaks or unfair means in exams will get jail terms for a minimum of 5 years and a maximum of 10 years, and a fine of up to Rs 50 lakh.

 

For organised crimes, the bill proposes a minimum sentence of seven years and a fine of up to Rs 10 crore.

All the states and UTs will be directed to set up fast-track courts, which will conduct hearings swiftly and complete the trial within three months of filing of the chargesheet, the bill says.

Amid the ongoing students' agitation at the Jantar Mantar and different parts of the country seeking accountability in education, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had promised a law to deal with cases like the NEET-UG paper leak.

He also said that cases of accused in such cases will be tried in fast-track courts.

On Friday, the Union Cabinet cleared the bill for its introduction in Parliament.

The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024, which the bill proposes to amend, was enacted to prevent resorting to unfair means in public examinations.

The bill notes that in recent years, there have been some incidents of question paper leaks and malpractices in examinations conducted by public examination authorities, "which tend to affect the transparency and fairness of the public examinations system".

The amendment bill seeks to empower all the state governments and UT administrations to designate any court of session to be a special fast-track court to try offences under the proposed law.

It also provides that the proceedings in such courts are continued on a day-to-day basis and the trial is completed within three months from the date of filing of the chargesheet.

It also empowers the Central government to constitute a special task force for investigation of any offence, if necessary.