Will Bring Stringent Law To Curb Exam Paper Leaks: Bihar Government

Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Chaudhary on Thursday asserted that the state government would bring in a stringent law to curb exam paper leaks, even as the CBI made its first arrest in the NEET-UG row, taking two people in custody from Patna.

The new law will be passed by the assembly in the upcoming monsoon session of the state legislature, Mr Chaudhary said.

“Following the direction of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, the state government is going to introduce a stringent law to check cases of question paper leaks in Bihar,” he told PTI.

The monsoon session of the Bihar assembly and state legislative council will be held from July 22 to July 26, spanning five sittings.

“The central government has already notified the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024, which aims to prevent unfair means in public examinations and common entrance tests held across the country. Now, the Bihar government has also decided to bring a law, which will curb paper leaks and malpractices in recruitment examinations,” the deputy CM said.

On the CBI probe into the NEET-UG paper leaks, he said, “The investigation is underway… no one will be spared.” The arrested accused were produced before a special court in Patna on Thursday, which sent them to judicial custody, officials said, adding the CBI will now seek the duo’s remand to quiz them.

The eastern state was also recently rocked by the Bihar Public Service Commission’s Teachers Recruitment Exam (TRE)-3 paper leak case.

Meanwhile, mystery surrounded the whereabouts of an alleged solver gang member, a student of AIIMS-Jodhpur, who had appeared for another candidate at a NEET-UG exam centre in Bihar’s Muzaffarpur district on May 5, sources said.

He was caught during biometric attendance at the centre minutes before the test, but was allegedly allowed to go after submitting a written apology to the authorities, they said.

“A team of police officers recently visited the house of the accused in Jodhpur and met his family members. But, he was not there. The officers also visited AIIMS-Jodhpur… but officials there had no information about his whereabouts. We have served notices to his family members as well as the institute’s administration,” Awadhesh Dixit, SP (City), told PTI.