Congress Leader Jairam Ramesh Criticizes New Anti-Paper Leak Law

New Delhi [India], June 22: Congress leader Jairam Ramesh has criticized the Bharatiya Janata Party government over the new anti-paper leak law for exams, which came into effect on June 21. He stated that the law addresses leaks after they occur, rather than preventing them in the first place.

The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024, aims to prevent unfair practices in public examinations and common entrance tests across the country. The bill was passed by Parliament in February and received the President’s assent on February 13, 2024.

Jairam Ramesh expressed his views on social media, calling the law a ‘damage control’ measure to address controversies in exams like NEET, UGC-NET, and CSIR-UGC-NET. He emphasized the need for laws and systems to prevent leaks from happening initially.

The Act prohibits disclosing exam-related confidential information before time and unauthorized entry into exam centers. Offenders can face imprisonment between three to five years and fines up to Rs 10 lakh.

Recent exam controversies, including allegations of irregularities and paper leaks in NEET-UG 2024, have led to re-tests and cancellations to ensure transparency and fairness in the examination process.