The Central Government has proposed several major changes in the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) (Amendment) Bill, 2026 to prevent irregularities like paper leaks and cheating in public examinations. The objective of this bill is to make competitive and recruitment examinations more secure and transparent. In the new bill, punishment has been increased for those who use unfair means in the examination. Now, if found guilty in such cases, the punishment can be a minimum of 5 years and a maximum of 10 years in jail. Along with this, the limit of fine has also been increased to Rs 50 lakh. Earlier the maximum limit of fine was Rs 10 lakh.
If necessary, the Central Government will be able to form a Special Task Force (STF) to investigate examination scams. Police, Central Investigation Agency or STF will have to complete the investigation of such cases within 2 months, so that there is no delay in action. To provide speedy justice, a provision has been made to create special fast track courts in every state and union territory. Cases will be heard daily in these courts. After the charge sheet is filed, efforts will be made to decide the case within 3 months. After the implementation of the law, already pending cases can also be sent to these fast track courts.
Special arrangements for states
The bill also gives states and union territories the right to appoint special public prosecutors. At the same time, an appeal can be made against the decision of the Fast Track Court in a two-judge bench of the High Court and efforts will be made to give a decision on that too within 3 months.
5 years jail and fine on guilty officers
The government has also increased its strictness on examination conducting agencies and service providers. If any service provider is found involved in paper leak or any kind of irregularities in the examination, then a fine of up to Rs 5 crore can be imposed on him. Earlier this limit was Rs 1 crore. Apart from this, the period to stop such agencies from conducting public examinations has also been extended. Now they can be banned for 8 years instead of 4 years.
The responsibility of directors and senior officers of companies has also been fixed in the bill. If officials of a company are found guilty in the examination scam, they may have to face a minimum of 5 years in jail and a fine of up to Rs 5 crore.
Organized gangs will be fined Rs 10 crore
Strict action will also be taken against the gangs that cheat in examinations in an organized manner. In such cases, the minimum punishment has been increased from 5 years to 7 years. At the same time, the amount of minimum fine has also been increased from Rs 1 crore to Rs 10 crore. The government says that this step has been taken in view of the cases of paper leaks and rigging in NEET-UG, UGC-NET and other examinations in recent years. The government’s aim is to make the examination system safe, get the culprits punished quickly and protect the future of millions of students.
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