UP clears Ordinance to penalise guilty in paper leak cases with Rs 1 crore fine, life imprisonment

Lucknow: In a bid to curb cases of leak of papers of competitive examinations, the Uttar Pradesh government plans to enact a stringent law providing for life imprisonment and a fine of Rs one crore to those found guilty in such cases.

The UP cabinet on Tuesday gave approval to the Uttar Pradesh Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Ordinance 2024 at its meeting here which was chaired by chief minister Yogi Adityanath.

An Ordinance was being brought as the UP assembly was not currently in session, sources here said.

The provisions of the Ordinance would be applicable to public services recruitment examinations, regularization or promotion examinations besides the entrance examinations for degree, diploma and other courses, a government spokesman here said.

Distribution of fake examination papers and making fake employment websites had also been made punishable offenses. Those found guilty in such cases could face a jail term from two years to life imprisonment besides fine of Rs one crore.

The Ordinance also provides for realization of the expenses incurred on cancellation of examinations from the solver gangs, companies and the service providers responsible for conducting these examinations and also black listing them.

It also provides for attachment of properties and the conditions for bail to the accused in such cases were made more stringent.

The Ordinance comes in the wake of cancellation of the Uttar Pradesh Police recruitment examinations, which were held on February 17 and 18 across the state, following leak of question papers of the exams. Earlier the state government had also cancelled the UPPSC RO/ARO (preliminary) examinations after allegations of paper leak.

The cancellation of the examinations had triggered a wave of protests in the state by the applicants and the opposition parties had also made them a major issue in the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections.