The Congress government in Rajasthan on July 4 decided to introduce a stringent law to prevent recruitment exam paper leaks by enhancing the maximum punishment for the offence from the current 10 years to life imprisonment. A Bill for increase in the sentence will be introduced in the next session of the State Assembly.
Govt seeks transparency
Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot said here that while the Bill would be brought in the upcoming Assembly session, additional steps would be taken to ensure transparency in holding the competitive exams. “I have instructed the Chief Secretary to formulate a better procedure for this in consultation with all stakeholders,” he said.
The Chief Secretary has been asked to hold discussions in this regard with the State government’s recruitment agencies, including the Rajasthan Public Service Commission (RPSC), Department of Personnel (DOP) and the Rajasthan Staff Selection Board (RSSB).
Also read | Sachin Pilot takes a dig at own party government in Rajasthan on paper leak issue
Harsh penalties
The State Assembly passed a Bill in March 2022 providing for imprisonment of up to 10 years and a fine of Rs.10 crore for offences such as government exam paper leaks and cheating in recruitment tests. The State government introduced the Bill after the cancellation of the Rajasthan Eligibility Examination for Teachers (REET) level-two because of a paper leak.
In addition to the Opposition parties which have targeted the ruling Congress on the issue, former Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot had also called for dissolution of the RPSC and compensation for the candidates who suffered because of question paper leaks. The BJP has demanded a CBI probe into the REET paper leak, which is being investigated by the Special Operations Group of Rajasthan police.
Tuesday’s decision was perceived in political circles as a step to mollify Mr. Pilot and facilitate a truce between him and Mr. Gehlot following a prolonged tussle between the factions led by the two Congress leaders. It was also described as a measure to entice lakhs of unemployed youths, suffering from the paper leak incidents, ahead of this year’s Assembly election.
