India parliament passes anti-exam fraud law, max penalty doubled to 10 years

Published Jul 30, 06:16 PM UTC

On July 30, 2026, the Indian parliament adopted a law toughening sanctions against exam fraud, doubling the maximum penalty to ten years in prison and fines exceeding one million dollars. The legislation responds to massive fraud during a national medical school entrance exam in May, for which over 2 million candidates registered. The scandal, which may have contributed to about twenty student suicides, sparked an unprecedented student movement led by the 'Cockroach People's Party' (CJP), a social media-born protest group. The movement forced Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan to resign on July 25. Protests culminated on July 20 when crowds attempted to march on Parliament, leading to police clashes and arrests. India's federal investigation agency has charged 13 people with offenses related to the exam paper leak. The law now requires presidential signature from Droupadi Murmu before enactment.

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