The Congress party fielded top leaders including Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, KC Venugopal, and Gaurav Gogoi to address the lower house.
The INDIA bloc conditioned its full participation on the government addressing alleged police brutality and the use of pellet guns against protesting students.
Introduced by Union Minister Jitendra Singh, the bill proposes raising jail terms to up to 10 years and fines to ₹50 lakh for exam malpractice.
Parliament Monsoon Session: Opposition Backs Paper Leak Bill But Demands Answers On Bihar Student Protest Crackdown
Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra will lead the Lok Sabha debate on the Public Examinations Amendment Bill, 2026, in New Delhi on Tuesday
Summary
The Indian National Congress has lined up Leader of the Opposition of Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, KC Venugopal and Gaurav Gogoi to address the lower house on 'The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Amendment Bill, 2026' on Tuesday.
The INDIA bloc indicated its participation remains conditional on the government addressing safety concerns over law enforcement actions.
"We are neither against the paper leak bill nor discussion on it; we fully support any move to strengthen exams," said INDIA bloc sources. However, they asserted that they still need an answer on the use of excessive force and pellet guns on the protesting students at the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) protest, as reported by ANI.
Following this, the Lok Sabha was adjourned till 2 pm on Tuesday. Speaker Om Birla appealed for cooperation, saying, "Let the House function; let there be discussion and dialogue, and let everyone's views be expressed."
Congress MP Karti Chidambaram struck an optimistic note ahead of the resumption, "Well, I'm given to believe that the bill will be debated from 2 PM onwards and the house will function smoothly," he said.
Protests Over Police Action
Reportedly, the opposition floor leaders met in the office of the Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the Rajya Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge, to coordinate a unified floor strategy for both Houses during the Monsoon Session, addressing the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Amendment Bill, 2026.
Union Minister of State Jitendra Singh introduced the Bill on Monday amid heavy protests and sloganeering. Opposition members drowned out attempts to advance the legislation twice, forcing multiple adjournments before the House reconvened at 5 pm.
Reports of police action jolted Parliament, specifically the alleged use of AK-47s against student protesters in Bihar and force at Jantar Mantar.
Advertisement
Stricter Penalties For Malpractice
The government introduced the legislation following widespread protests over the NEET-UG paper leak and the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan. The legislation amends the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024, fulfilling commitments made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi following the student demonstrations.
The amendment raises jail terms for convicted individuals to between five and 10 years, alongside fines up to ₹50 lakh. The previous law prescribed a three- to five-year sentence and a ₹10 lakh fine.
Service providers face a ₹5 crore fine and an eight-year ban, compared to the earlier ₹1 crore fine and four-year ban. Authorities will also recover exam costs from them. The Bill mandates a three-month trial timeline from the filing of a charge sheet, a time-bound probe, a special task force and daily trial proceedings.
(With inputs from agencies)
Advertisement
Published At: