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Government has introduced the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Amendment Bill, 2026 in the Lok Sabha, sharply raising penalties under the 2024 Act.
Individual-offender jail terms rise from 3-5 years to 5-10 years, and fines from up to ₹10 lakh to up to ₹50 lakh; organised-syndicate fines rise to at least ₹10 crore.
Every State/UT must now designate a Court of Session as a Special Fast Track Court, bound to a 3-month trial after chargesheet.
Investigations get a first-ever 2-month deadline, and the Centre can now set up a dedicated Special Task Force for a case.
Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024 comes into force — India's first dedicated exam-fraud law, covering UPSC, SSC, NTA, RRB and banking recruitment exams
NEET-UG 2024 paper leak at Oasis School, Hazaribagh (Jharkhand); Supreme Court later held the leak was confined to Patna and Hazaribagh and not 'systemic', declining to cancel the exam
Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Amendment Bill, 2026 introduced in the Lok Sabha to raise penalties and add time-bound investigation and trial
| Offender category | 2024 Act | 2026 Bill |
|---|---|---|
| Individual offender (Sec. 10) | 3-5 years jail, fine up to ₹10 lakh | 5-10 years jail, fine up to ₹50 lakh |
| Service provider (Sec. 10) | Fine up to ₹1 crore, 4-year exam-conduct ban | Fine up to ₹5 crore, 8-year exam-conduct ban |
| Directors/senior management (Sec. 10) | 3-10 years jail, fine ₹1 crore | 5-10 years jail, fine ₹5 crore |
| Organised syndicate (Sec. 11) | 5-10 years jail, fine at least ₹1 crore | 7-10 years jail, fine at least ₹10 crore |
Conducts NEET-UG, JEE Main, UGC-NET, CUET and other central exams; one of the bodies whose exams the 2024 Act protects
Nodal department administering the Act, under the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions
New investigative option under the 2026 Bill; once notified for a case, it has sole investigating authority
India's first dedicated central law against exam cheating, paper leaks and organised exam-fraud rackets; in force since 21 June 2024
Raises penalties across all offender categories, creates Special Task Forces and Special Fast Track Courts, and imposes investigation/trial deadlines for the first time
Where an accused also faces BNS or other connected charges, the Special Fast Track Court tries them together in one trial instead of splitting across courts
An early state law on the same subject, later supplemented by the Rajasthan Public Examination (Measures for Prevention of Unfair Means in Recruitment) Act, 2022
UP's original state law; a 2024 UP Ordinance further raised penalties to up to life imprisonment and a ₹1 crore fine, ahead of the central 2024 Act
The Supreme Court found no 'systemic' breach, but the episode intensified political pressure that shaped both the 2024 Act's early enforcement and the 2026 tightening
GS Paper 2 > Governance > Government Policies and Interventions
Recurring — exam-integrity law has been in the news since the 2024 NEET-UG leak and is likely to return with each amendment or major leak case
A Court of Session designated by each State/UT, in consultation with the High Court Chief Justice, to try exam-fraud cases within a fixed 3-month trial window
A dedicated investigative body the Central Government may set up under the 2026 Bill, holding sole investigating authority once notified for a case