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Patna: Bihar Assembly on Wednesday passed an anti-paper leak bill by voice vote with an objective to deal with the menace of question paper leaks and other malpractices in the competitive examinations in the state.
Bihar Public Examinations (PE) (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill, 2024 aims at checking malpractices such as the leak of question or answer papers. The bill has been passed against the backdrop of a major controversy arising due to the NEET-UG 2024 paper leak. Bihar has been at the centre of the NEET paper leak controversy. A number of accused from the state have been arrested by Bihar police`s EOU and CBI in this connection.
The bill was tabled by state Parliamentary Affairs Minister Vijay Kumar Chaudhary and passed by voice vote amid walkout by the opposition. The opposition staged a walkout to protest against the alleged deteriorating law and order situation and the denial of special status to Bihar.
The Bill has strict provisions including a prison term of up to 10 years and a fine up to Rs one crore for those found guilty of involvement in irregularities in exams for both individuals and organisations.
It also has a clause for attaching the properties of those found guilty and makes it difficult for people arrested for exam irregularities to get bail. All crimes under this law will be cognisable and non-bailable.
If convicted, a person will face imprisonment for up to 10 years and a fine of Rs 1 crore. All crimes under this law will be cognizable and non-bailable.
