The Lok Sabha is set to discuss The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Amendment Bill, 2026, on Tuesday, marking a potential end to the week-long deadlock in Parliament. The breakthrough comes after a day of behind-the-scenes negotiations led by Speaker Om Birla and government floor managers, who engaged Opposition leaders in talks. The decision to take up the Bill was reached after a three-hour adjournment from 2 pm to 5 pm on Monday, during which Birla personally reached out to floor leaders across party lines.
Government floor managers simultaneously engaged Opposition leaders, leading to an agreement that the Bill would be taken up on Tuesday, with members expected to move amendments before the government replies. The breakthrough came after another day of washout in Parliament on Monday, with Opposition MPs protesting at Parliament’s Makar Dwar over two separate issues – police action against protesters and the Ram Temple donation row. Despite repeated disruptions, Minister of State for the Prime Minister’s Office Jitendra Singh introduced the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Amendment Bill, 2026 at noon.
The Bill aims to curb paper leaks and organised examination fraud, and provides for jail terms up to 10 years and a penalty of up to Rs 50 lakh. If the crime is found to be organised, the Bill proposes a minimum sentence of seven years and a penalty of up to Rs 10 crore. It also sets a two-month deadline to complete investigations into paper leak cases and empowers States and Union Territories to set up fast-track courts to complete the trial within three months of filing of the chargesheet.
Furthermore, the Centre will be empowered to set up a special task force to probe some paper leak cases. The development comes two days after Dharmendra Pradhan resigned as the Education Minister on Saturday, following over a month-long protest spearheaded by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) over the NEET(UG) question paper leak. The Opposition has now shifted its focus to Union Home Minister Amit Shah on the alleged excesses by security personnel during the protest march to Parliament on July 20.
The Rajya Sabha witnessed similar scenes on Monday, with Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge seeking a discussion under Rule 267 on the police action against protesters, but Chairman CP Radhakrishnan rejected the notice. Opposition members demanded statements from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah, leading to repeated adjournments through the day.
