The Haryana government enacted a stringent anti-paper leak law in 2021 promising to crack down on organised examination fraud, including leakage of question papers in public examinations. But nearly five years later, the government’s own records suggest that prosecutions under the law have made limited headway.
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Of the 17 first information reports (FIRs) registered till December 31, 2025, after the law, the Haryana Public Examination (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, came into force on September 10, 2021, twelve have progressed to the chargesheet stage in trial courts while five cases are still under investigation by the state police.
The analysis is based on the record relating to 29 FIRs registered between 2014 and 2025 in connection with three Haryana Staff Selection Commission (HSSC) recruitment examinations and one FIR registered for alleged plan to leak CSIR-UGC NET examination paper under the central law, the Public Examination (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024.
An analysis of the statement laid in the state assembly by chief minister Nayab Singh Saini on December 22, 2025, showed that 13 FIRs were registered between 2014 and August 2021 before the Haryana anti-paper leak law came into being and eight of the 11 FIRs have culminated in the filing of chargesheets in the trial courts.
An analysis of the timelines showed that the time taken to file chargesheets by the investigating agency varied widely across cases. While some investigations were completed within two to three months, others stretched over several years. The fastest chargesheet was filed within 51 days of registration, whereas another took more than three years to reach the court, thus highlighting inconsistencies in the pace of prosecution and need for stricter deadlines for completion of investigations and trial by a fast-track court.
Officials said that the state government should contemplate amending the Haryana Public Examination (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act to ensure expeditious investigation and trial. It should be modelled on the lines of the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) amendment Bill, 2026, introduced in the Lok Sabha on Monday.
The central amendment Bill proposes provisions for completion of investigation within two months, designation of courts of session as special fast-track courts for day-to-day trial of offences under the Act, completion of trial within three months from the date of filing of the chargesheet, and appointment of special public prosecutors for every special fast-track court.
While Haryana enacted the Haryana Public Examination (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2021, nearly three years before the Parliament enacted the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024, making it one of the earliest states to legislate specifically against examination paper leaks and organised cheating, the absence of statutory timelines for investigation and trial, special courts and specialised prosecution meant that several recruitment cases continue to remain pending years after registration of FIRs.
The statement of the objects and reasons of the 2021 Haryana law said that paper leaks compromised the constitutional guarantee of equal opportunity in public employment, undermined the credibility of the government and imposed substantial administrative costs when examinations have to be called off and conducted afresh.
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The recruitment frauds linked to the HSSC, included the examination for recruitment of male constables, gram sachivs and assistant linemen.
Though the Haryana Public Examination (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act was invoked in many of the post-September 10, 2021 cases, investigators continued to rely primarily on provisions of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) dealing with cheating, impersonation, forgery and criminal conspiracy. The most frequently invoked provisions include sections 419 (cheating by personation), 420 (cheating), 467 (forgery of valuable security), 468 (forgery for the purpose of cheating), 471 (using forged documents as genuine) and 120B (criminal conspiracy) of the IPC.
Source
“Where the recruitment to public employment stands compromised as a consequence of fraud or irregularities, the entire process becomes vitiated. The recruitment examinations are often compromised due to deceitful means and measures. The essence of the examinations is that the worth of every person is appraised without any assistance from an outside source. Unfortunately, the issue has assumed dimensions of organised crime and involves huge pecuniary advantages to nefarious persons. This is an offence against the society at large,” said the statement underscoring the philosophy behind the enactment.
