Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw addressing the media on the Cabinet Decision at the National Media Centre, in New Delhi on Friday, July 24, 2026. | Photo Credit: SUSHIL KUMAR VERMA

The Union Cabinet on Friday approved a bill amending ‘The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024’ to prescribe jail terms of up to 10 years and penalties of up to ₹10 crore for individuals convicted in paper leak cases, official sources said.

The bill will be introduced in Parliament on Monday. This development occurred after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced around midnight on Thursday that a bill containing provisions for strong action against paper leaks would be introduced in Parliament next week.

According to sources, the bill will provide for imprisonment of up to 10 years, with a minimum sentence of 5 years for individuals resorting to unfair means.

The present law includes ‘leakage of question papers or answer keys’ of a public examination by any person, group of persons or institutions, for monetary or wrongful gain. Furthermore, it prescribes that any person or persons resorting to unfair means and offences shall be punished with imprisonment for a term not less than 3 years, which may extend to 5 years and with a fine of up to ₹10 lakh. In case of default in the payment of the fine, an additional punishment of imprisonment shall be imposed, as per the provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.

Sources also added that another provision would involve a fine of up to ₹1 crore for the guilty. As of now, it is unclear whether this limit applies to individuals or institutions. Under the present law, the guilty service provider shall also be liable to a fine up to ₹1 crore. Additionally, the proportionate cost of examination shall be recovered from him, and he shall be debarred from being assigned any responsibilities for the conduct of any public examination for a period of four years.

In his video message, Modi said, “On Monday, when the second week of the monsoon session of Parliament will begin, a bill will be brought with provisions for strong action against paper leaks, and we will try to pass it as early as possible.” He emphasised that the government ensured the students do not lose a year by holding a retest in the shortest possible time and then declaring the result on July 19.

The Prime Minister indicated that he does not count himself among those who would settle at this. “That is why I have given directions to the authorities concerned to set up fast-track courts. The fast-track courts have already been established,” he said. The bill will have a provision for a fixed timeline for faster prosecution of offenders by a dedicated mechanism, including fast-track courts.

Published on July 24, 2026