9 hours, 4 adjournments, fiery debate: How anti-paper leak bill cleared Lok Sabha

The anti-paper leak bill was passed after repeated adjournments, Rahul Gandhi's speech triggered disruptions and the government held high-level strategy meetings during breaks.

In Short

• Bill passed in Lok Sabha after nine hours of debate and protests
• Opposition disrupted proceedings; Rahul Gandhi's speech sparked uproar
• Government held high-level meetings during adjournments

After nearly nine hours of debate, the government succeeded in getting the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Amendment Bill, popularly referred to as the anti-paper leak bill, passed in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday despite repeated disruptions, slogan-shouting and fierce protests by the Opposition.

The legislation, which seeks to further strengthen the legal framework against paper leaks and examination malpractice, was passed after a politically charged day marked by adjournments, heated exchanges, high-level meetings and procedural interventions.

Here is a detailed timeline of how the Bill was passed through the Lower House.

PROTEST POLITICS SETS TONE BEFORE PARLIAMENT CONVENES

Even before Parliament assembled for the day, the political battle had shifted to the Parliament complex.

The Opposition and the ruling NDA staged parallel protests. Samajwadi Party MPs, led by party chief Akhilesh Yadav, raised allegations of irregularities in donations collected for the Ayodhya Ram Temple. At the same time, BJP MPs held demonstrations accusing Opposition-ruled states of failing to curb paper leaks, with the focus shifting to the alleged examination leak in Jharkhand.

Unlike previous protests, the INDIA bloc did not appear fully united. While the Samajwadi Party aggressively pursued the Ram Temple donation issue, several other Opposition parties remained focused on different political matters.

The BJP, meanwhile, continued its strategy of attacking the Opposition over paper leaks. After targeting Punjab over an alleged examination leak a day earlier, the ruling party used Wednesday's protests to highlight the Jharkhand case.

Following nearly an hour of demonstrations near the Makar Dwar entrance, MPs entered the Parliament building shortly before the House convened.

PROCEEDINGS BEGIN AMID UPROAR

The Lok Sabha met at 11 am, but normal business could not begin.

As soon as proceedings commenced, Opposition members launched loud protests, forcing repeated interruptions. With the House unable to function, Speaker Om Birla adjourned proceedings until 12 noon.

DEBATE ON THE BILL BEGINS

When the House reassembled around 12 pm, discussion on the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Amendment Bill, 2026 commenced.

Members from both the ruling side and the Opposition participated in the debate. Several Independent MPs also spoke on the proposed legislation, expressing their views on the need for stronger safeguards against paper leaks and examination fraud.

The debate continued for several hours before the Leader of the Opposition, Rahul Gandhi, rose to speak at around 1 pm.

RAHUL GANDHI'S SPEECH TRIGGERS REPEATED DISRUPTIONS

Rahul Gandhi spoke for nearly an hour, but his speech repeatedly sparked protests from the Treasury benches.

According to the ruling side, Gandhi referred to several issues that were not directly connected to the legislation under discussion and made allegations against Home Minister Amit Shah that, they argued, were unrelated to the Bill.

Speaker Om Birla intervened multiple times, requesting Gandhi to confine his remarks to the subject of the legislation.

Treasury bench members maintained that the Leader of the Opposition ignored the Chair's repeated advice and continued making allegations without presenting supporting evidence.

During the debate, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju stood up to object, saying allegations of such a serious nature should not be made in the House without factual proof.

The repeated exchanges between the two sides led to continuous disruptions, ultimately forcing the Speaker to adjourn the House once again at 1:57 pm, this time until 2.30 pm.

HIGH-LEVEL MEETINGS DURING THE ADJOURNMENT

While the House remained adjourned, a series of closed-door meetings took place inside Parliament.

The first meeting was held in Home Minister Amit Shah's office and was attended by Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju and Union Minister Piyush Goyal.

This was followed by a meeting between Speaker Om Birla and Kiren Rijiju, which was later joined by Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi.

Shortly afterwards, Rijiju returned to Amit Shah's office for another round of discussions.

According to sources, the government concluded during these consultations that Rahul Gandhi had levelled allegations without evidence and had disregarded the Speaker's repeated directions to remain focused on the Bill.

At the same time, the government assessed that the legislation was too significant to be delayed, arguing that it directly concerned the future of millions of students and the integrity of public examinations. It was therefore decided that the Bill would be pushed through on the same day despite the disruptions.

The government also decided that Union Minister Jitendra Singh, who had introduced the Bill, would deliver the concluding reply, in keeping with parliamentary convention under which the minister piloting a Bill responds to the debate before voting.

FRESH ADJOURNMENT AFTER HOUSE RECONVENES

When the Lok Sabha met again at 2.30 pm, Opposition protests continued unabated.

Unable to restore order immediately, the Speaker adjourned proceedings once more until 3 pm.

GOVERNMENT'S CONCLUDING REPLY

When the House resumed at 3 pm, Jitendra Singh delivered the government's reply to the debate.

During his approximately 30-minute address, the minister defended the proposed legislation and responded to the allegations made by Rahul Gandhi against Home Minister Amit Shah, saying the Opposition had levelled charges without substantiating them with facts.

He reiterated the government's position that stronger legal provisions were necessary to curb organised paper leak rackets and restore public confidence in competitive examinations.

BILL PASSED AFTER VOTING

Following the minister's reply, the Speaker put the Bill to vote at around 3.30 pm.

Despite the continued protests from Opposition benches, the House passed the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Amendment Bill, 2026, marking the completion of its passage through the Lok Sabha.

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?

The government will now introduce the Bill in the Rajya Sabha. Once it is approved by the Upper House and receives the assent of the President, the amendments will become law.

According to the government, the amended legislation proposes several significant changes, including the establishment of fast-track courts for speedy disposal of examination-related offences, increasing the maximum punishment to 10 years' imprisonment, and raising the maximum fine to 10 crore.

The Centre has argued that these stricter provisions will serve as a strong deterrent against organised paper leak syndicates, improve transparency in public recruitment and entrance examinations, and help protect the interests of millions of students across the country.

- Ends