The Bihar Assembly on Wednesday passed a bill aimed at tackling question paper leaks and other malpractices in government recruitment examinations, PTI reported.

State Parliamentary Affairs Minister Vijay Kumar Chaudhary tabled the Bihar Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill, 2024, in the Assembly and it was passed with a voice vote. The Opposition had earlier walked out of the House to protest the government’s failure to curb examination malpractices.

The new legislation in the state comes amid allegations of paper leaks and other irregularities in the 2024 undergraduate National Eligibility-Cum-Entrance Test.

The examination, which is conducted by the National Testing Agency for admissions to undergraduate medical courses, was held on May 5 and the results were declared on June 4.

Bihar and Jharkhand have been at the centre of the controversy. The Central Bureau of Investigation, which on June 22 filed a first information report on a complaint by the Union education ministry amid the allegations, has arrested 21 persons accused in the case from the two states so far.

The bill passed in the Bihar Assembly on Wednesday stipulates stringent punishments, including a jail term of three to five years and a fine of Rs 10 lakh, for those found to be involved in such malpractices, PTI reported.

Last month, the Centre operationalised the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024 that is aimed at tackling malpractices in state-run competitive examinations. It also entails stringent punishments, including a maximum jail term of 10 years, along with a Rs 1 crore fine, for offenders.

The Act was passed by the two Houses of Parliament during the Budget session that concluded on February 10. On February 13, President Droupadi Murmu gave her assent to the Act.