‘Anti-Cheating’ Bill – Lok Sabha Passes Bill To Prevent Paper Leaks

Lok Sabha Passes the Bill To Prevent Paper Leaks and Cheating in the Public Examinations. The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill, 2024 seeks to prevent unfair practices in public examinations like Union Public Service Commission, Staff Selection Commission, Railway Recruitment Board, National Testing Agency, Institute of Banking Personnel Selection, and Departments of the Central government and their attached offices for recruitment. The main objective of this Bill is to bring and maintain greater transparency in the system. It will ensure the fairness and credibility of the public examination systems and also safeguard the sincere and genuine efforts of the Indian youths.

In this article, we are going to discuss the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill, 2024 in detail with its all specifications.

The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill, 2024 – Overview

The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill, 2024 will deal with the malpractices and different irregularities in government recruitment examinations with the provisions for a maximum of 10 years of imprisonment and a fine up to Rs 1 crore. Here is the general overview of The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill, 2024 as mentioned below.

The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill, 2024 – Overview
Bill Title	Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill, 2024
Introduction Date	February 5, 2024
Introduced By	Dr. Jitendra Singh Minister of State in the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions of India
Objective	Prevent the use of unfair means in public examinations and also safeguard the sincere and genuine efforts of the Indian youths.
Definition of Public Examinations	Examinations conducted by specified authorities or notified by the central government, including UPSC, SSC, Railway Recruitment Board, and others.
Offences	Collusion or conspiracy to facilitate unfair means. Unauthorised access to question papers or answer keys. Assisting candidates in examinations. Tampering with computer networks or documents. Conducting the fake examinations or issuing the fake admit cards for candidates.
Penalties	Imprisonment between 3 to 5 years. A fine up to Rs 10 lakh for offences related to public examinations.
Responsibilities of Service Providers	Report violations to police and examination authority, failure to report is an offence.
Punishment for Service Providers	Maximum fine up to Rs 1 crore. Proportionate cost of examination recovery. Will barred from the conducting of any type of public examinations for next four years.
Liability of Directors or Management	Individually liable for committed offences with their consent. Imprisonment between 3 to 10 years and a fine of one crore rupees.
Organised Crimes	Higher punishment for unlawful acts committed by persons or groups to further wrongful gain in public examinations.
Investigation and Inquiry	All offences cognisable, non-bailable, and non-compoundable. Investigation will be conducted by Deputy Superintendent or Assistant Commissioner of Police.

Examination Bodies Fall Under The Bill

The proposed anti-cheating bill or Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill, 2024 will include the examinations conducted by the following agencies along with other authorities that may be notified or added to this list in the future.

• Union Public Service Commission
• Staff Selection Commission
• Railway Recruitment Boards
• Ministries or Departments of the Central Government
• Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (Except State Bank of India)
• National Testing Agency

Definition Of “Unfair Means” According To The Bill

The “Unfair Means” is a term that is not fair or conforming to fundamental notions of justice, honesty, ethics, or the like as per the law. The bill identifies the following unfair means and offenses during public examinations as mentioned below. (Not Mentioned Specifically In The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 Till Now, Will Be Included Soon).

• The leak of question papers or answer keys.
• Participation in secret or illegal cooperation or conspiracy with others to tamper the question papers or the answer keys leaks.
• Accessing or taking ownership of question papers or an OMR response sheet without authority.
• Providing solutions or helping candidates by any unauthorized person during a public examination.
• Altering the assessment without any authority (except to correct any bona fide error).
• Willful violation of norms or standards of a public examination on its own or through its agency.
• Tampering any document that is necessary for short-listing candidates or finalizing the merit or rank of a candidate in a public examination.
• Intentional violation of security measures to facilitate unfair means during the conduct of a public examination.
• Tampering with the different computer networks or a computer resource of a public examination.
• Manipulation in seating arrangements, and allocation of dates and shifts for the candidates to facilitate adopting unfair means in the public examinations.
• Threatening the life or wrongfully restraining persons associated with the public examination authority.
• Creation of fake websites to cheat and monetary gain.
• Conduct of fake examination and issuance of fake admit cards.
• Issue the fake offer letters to cheat or for monetary gain.

Punishment For “Unfair Means” Mentioned In The Bill

According to the draft bill, all the offenses will be cognizable, non-bailable, and non-compoundable. The bill will be merged later with the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 brought into force in the system. Until that the sections of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 will be applicable to file the cases against the criminals. Here are the punishments for the mentioned offenses as mentioned below.

• If any individuals are found guilty as per the definition under the “unfair means and offenses” of the bill, they can face imprisonment for a term of 3 – 5 years. They have to pay a fine of up to Rs 10 lakh. Additional imprisonment can be imposed for defaulting the fine payment as per the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 in the future.
• The service providers can be fined up to Rs 1 crore. These fines will also include the recovery of examination costs. These service providers will be blacklisted and they will not be able to conduct any public examinations for the next four years.
• If the directors or any senior management are found guilty, they will face imprisonment for 3 – 10 years. With this, they have to pay a fine of Rs 1 crore. Additional imprisonment can be imposed for defaulting the fine payment as per the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 in the future.
• As per the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, these are the organized crimes. These crimes may result in a minimum imprisonment of 5 years, which can be extended to 10 years, along with a minimum fine of Rs 1 crore for any individuals or examination service providers.

High level National Technical Committee on Public Examinations

Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill, 2024 also proposed to set up a High-level National Technical Committee on Public Examinations. Here will be the major role of this committee as mentioned below.

• It will look into developing protocols and ensure a fool-proof IT security system.
• The committee will ensure the comprehensive electronic surveillance of the examination centers.
• The committee personnel will formulate and set up both IT and physical infrastructure to examine as per the national standards and service levels.

Advantages Of Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill, 2024

The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill, 2024 is a great step ahead to reducing the unemployment rate in India. It will not only reframe the examination infrastructure of the country but also safeguard the sincere and genuine efforts of the Indian youths. Here are some major advantages of the bill as mentioned below.

• The previous leak incident messed up the plans of around 1.4 crore people who were applying for 1.04 lakh open positions.
• The exam leak made a lot of people worried, including the candidates and their families. These incidents break their enthusiasm to reappear the same test for the next time.
• This is a big deal because it is about jobs and careers. Especially these incidents decline in government employment opportunities nationwide.
• There were no drafted national laws to deal with these types of cheating or paper leaks. This bill will prevent dishonest people from messing up the government exams.

Future Prospects – The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill, 2024

The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill, 2024 has also talked about some prospects. Here are two major aspects we can consider as mentioned below.

• At this time, the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) conducts its examinations in 13 languages. In the near future, they will include all 22 scheduled languages to conduct the exam.
• The Bill will gradually push the different examination bodies to conduct exams in more regional languages due to the increasing use of technology and artificial intelligence (AI).

Conclusion

The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill, 2024 covers public examinations conducted by specific authorities listed in its Schedule or as notified by the Union government of India. The Bill prohibits the disclosure of exam-related confidential information before the exam and unauthorized access to exam centers to cause disruptions. Offenders will face imprisonment for three to five years and fines up to Rs 10 lakh. On the other hand, the service providers, who offer support or resources to examination authorities, can be fined up to Rs one crore for offenses under this specific Bill. For organized crimes related to public exams, offenders may face imprisonment for five to ten years and fines of at least Rs one crore. All offenses under the Bill are cognizable, non-bailable, and non-compoundable.

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FAQs – Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill, 2024

What is the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill, of 2024?

The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill, 2024 seeks to prevent unfair practices in public examinations.

What is the aim of the Public Examinations Bill, of 2024?

The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill, 2024 will deal with the malpractices and different irregularities in government recruitment examinations with the provisions for a maximum of 10 years of imprisonment and a fine up to Rs 1 crore.

Which offences have been defined by The Public Examinations Bill, 2024?

The bill identifies the following unfair means and offenses during public examinations like the leak of question papers or answer keys and participation in secret or illegal cooperation or conspiracy with others to tamper the question papers or the answer keys leaks.

Which examination bodies fall under the Public Examinations Bill, 2024?

The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill, 2024 seeks to prevent unfair practices in public examinations like Union Public Service Commission, Staff Selection Commission, Railway Recruitment Board, National Testing Agency, Institute of Banking Personnel Selection, and Departments of the Central government and their attached offices for recruitment.

Which recruitment authority is exempted from The Public Examinations Bill, 2024?

State Bank of India is exempted from The Public Examinations Bill, 2024.

What are the major advantages of the Public Examinations Bill, 2024?

There were no drafted national laws to deal with these types of cheating or paper leaks. This bill will prevent dishonest people from messing up the government exams.