Chandigarh, Jul 26 (PTI) Shiromani Akali Dal on Sunday welcomed the Centre’s draft bill to ensure stricter punishments for paper leaks and also called for empowering states to conduct examinations for their own recruitments and institutions.
In a statement, senior SAD leader Daljit Singh Cheema said that while stronger punishment for those involved in paper leaks was necessary, that alone would not guarantee the integrity of public examinations.
In the true spirit of cooperative federalism, the Union government should frame uniform national security standards while empowering states to conduct examinations for their own recruitments and institutions, Cheema said.
“Decentralisation, coupled with strong national Standard Operating Procedures (SOP), will reduce systemic risks, improve accountability, strengthen public confidence and ensure better protection of the aspirations of millions of honest students,” he added.
The SAD leader said that the law should place equal emphasis on preventive measures — robust SOPs, secure technology, end-to-end accountability, regular security audits and foolproof examination protocols — to ensure that leaks do not occur in the first place.
“India’s vast geography, linguistic diversity, varying infrastructure and technology levels, and the enormous logistical challenge of transporting confidential papers to thousands of examination centres make highly centralised examinations inherently more vulnerable,” he added.
The Union Cabinet, in a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday, approved a draft bill to ensure stricter punishments for paper leaks.
The bill seeks an amendment to the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024 and proposes a minimum punishment of five years’ imprisonment for individuals involved in paper leaks and/or a fine.
It proposes a jail term of up to 10 years and a maximum fine of Rs 10 crore in case of organised paper leaks.
The bill aimed to prevent organised gangs and institutions that indulge in unfair means for monetary gains, while protecting the candidates from its provisions. PTI SUN RUK RUK
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