An ally of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) on Wednesday urged lawmakers to look at the nationwide student protests over alleged paper leaks and examination irregularities as an opportunity to reform India's public examination system rather than criticizing the demonstrations.
The protests, in Lok Sabha during the debate on the Public Examination (Prevention of Unfair Means) Amendment Bill, 2026, Indra Hang Subba, member of the Sikkim Krantikari Morcha (SKM) in Sikkim, said the protests reflected real problems of millions of students and could serve as a reminder that the examination system in India should be strengthened.
Subba said that students’ demonstrations in the last few months shouldn’t be seen negatively. He said they should be seen as a wake-up call for governments, Parliament and politicians across political parties to reform the quality and transparency of the examination program.
The amendment bill was introduced because of growing concern on the basis of the alleged NEET-UG paper leak and students across the country were calling for more rigorous action against examination fraud and for more accountability to be taken by professionals who administer competitive exams.
Subba said examination malpractice has grown beyond isolated cheating incidents and has become organized criminal networks involving financial gain.
He said these illegal activities unfairly favor candidates with greater financial resources and put hardworking students from economically weaker backgrounds at a disadvantage.
He said that when qualified candidates are left behind because of paper leaks or unfair practices, the damage is not only to the careers of the people but the trust in the education system. Such cases should be investigated in a finite time frame so justice doesn’t get delayed, he added.
Hanuman Beniwal, a Rashtriya Loktantrik Party (RLP) member of parliament, also expressed concern over paper leak and this issue during the debate.
He supported stronger measures against offenders but said that the proposed legislation needs to have stronger legal provisions to tackle the organized examination fraud.
“Anti-paper leak bill will empower examination system's credibility and give strict punishment to criminals involved in such cases.
— News Arena India (@NewsArenaIndia) July 29, 2026
We should not see these protests negatively, it's a wake up call for us.”
- Sikkim Krantikari Morcha MP Indra Hang Subba in Lok Sabha pic.twitter.com/dk2nWEZaSR
Beniwal also criticized the limited time allotted to him during the discussion, saying that leaders who had actively supported protesting students deserved a greater opportunity to present their views.
He said the movement had taken place from the streets to Parliament and credited student-led protests with pushing the government to introduce the amendment bill.
Beniwal also paid tribute to students who died by suicide when examination-related controversies erupted, saying paper leaks have occurred under governments led by different political parties and urged lawmakers to act in a non-partisan manner to deal with the issue.
He proposed other measures, including life sentences for organized paper leak syndicates that have affected multiple examinations, court-supervised investigations with mandatory digital video recording, lifetime bans on convicted offenders from appearing in public examinations or holding government jobs, and legal provisions allowing courts to order narco-analysis and polygraph tests during investigations.
Beniwal concluded his address by saying a law alone would not solve the problem.
He said only swift and hard-hitting action against the masterminds who were behind paper leaks, corrupt officials and those who provided political cover for the students would restore students’ faith in the examination system and bring about justice for the country’s youth.
