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54 minutes ago
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4 min readNew DelhiJul 25, 2026 04:30 AM IST
Union Ministers J P Nadda and Jitendra Singh with CJP’s Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka, Friday. (ANI)
A day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced fast-track courts and a tough new law to punish those involved in exam paper leaks, the Union Cabinet Friday approved a draft Bill with provisions for a jail term up to 10 years, penalty up to Rs 10 crore, statutory backing for fast-track courts and a five-month timeline for investigation and trial of cases, official sources said.
Hours later, in an Instagram post, Modi thanked everyone for the responses and positive suggestions received on his Thursday midnight video in which he announced the government’s decision.
“Thank you, friends. I got the opportunity to talk to you at midnight. The way you have responded to my video, positive suggestions given by you, thanks to everybody. Your love will continue to flow; our relations will continue with more bonding. Thank you, thank you friends,” he said in the new video message.
The Cabinet, sources said, approved a proposal to amend The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024. Under Section 10 of the Act, the punishment for individuals resorting to unfair means is imprisonment of three to five years and a fine up to Rs 10 lakh. Section 11 provides for imprisonment of five to 10 years and a fine of at least Rs 1 crore for those involved in organised crime.
Without specifying if it would be applicable to individuals or organised crime, sources said the Bill would increase the imprisonment term up to 10 years and a fine up to Rs 10 crore.
Among the proposed amendments in the Bill is a time-bound investigation and trial of paper leak cases within five months. According to sources, the proposed amendments in the law provides a two-month time frame for investigation of paper leak cases and three months for completion of trials of such cases. Thus, the paper leak cases will be fast-tracked and will be taken to conclusion within five months, the sources said.
The fast-track courts to be set up for such cases would be given statutory backing through the Bill, the sources said.
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The existing law that came into effect on June 21, 2024 aimed to curb leaks, malpractices as well as organised malpractices in public examinations conducted by the Union Public Service Commission, the Staff Selection Commission, the Railway Recruitment Board, the Institute of Banking Personnel Selection and the National Testing Agency which, among others, conducts the NEET exam.
Sources said the amendment Bill is likely to be brought in Parliament Monday, as announced by the Prime Minister Thursday.
Earlier Thursday, Law and Justice Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal said the fast-track courts would be set up in the High Courts of Bombay, Calcutta, Delhi and Madhya Pradesh where cases pertaining to the NEET paper leak are ongoing.
The announcement came in the wake of the protests by students and the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), demanding the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, accountability for exam irregularities, reforms in the education system, and compensation to families of students who died by suicide after the NEET-UG paper leak in May.
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