The Gujarat Public Examination (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2023

IV Ex.-2           2-1 

Extra No. 2  

© 

The Gujarat Government Gazette 
EXTRAORDINARY 

PUBLISHED BY AUTHORITY 

Vol. LXIV ]    FRIDAY,  MARCH  3,  2023 / PHALGUNA  12,  1944 

Separate paging is given to this Part in order that it may be filed as a Separate Compilation. 

 
PART IV 

 

Acts of Gujarat Legislature and Ordinances promulgated and Regulations 

made by the Governor. 

 

 

 The following Act of the Gujarat Legislature, having been assented to by the 

Governor on the 2nd March, 2023 is hereby published for general information. 

 

K. M. LALA, 

Secretary to the Government of Gujarat, 

Legislative and Parliamentary Affairs Department. 

 

GUJARAT ACT NO. 2 OF 2023. 

 (First published, after having received the assent of the Governor, in the "Gujarat 

Government Gazette", on the 3rd March, 2023). 

AN ACT 

to prevent unfair means and leakage of question paper in public examination and to  

provide for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto. 

It is hereby enacted in the Seventy-fourth Year of the Republic of India as follows:- 

1.    (1)  This Act may be called the Gujarat Public Examination (Prevention of Unfair Means) 

Act, 2023.  

(2) It shall come into force on such date, as the State Government may, by notification in 

the Official Gazette, appoint.  

2.   In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,-  

(a) “conduct public examination” means and includes preparation, printing, 

supervision, coding, processing, distribution of question papers, evaluation, 

declaration of result, etc.; 

Short  

title and  

commencement. 

Definition

s. 

 



2-2 GUJARAT GOVERNMENT GAZETTE, EX. 03-03-2023 [ PART  IV 

(b) “examinee” means a person who has been granted permission by examination 

authority to appear in the public examination and includes a person authorized 

to act as scribe on his behalf in the public examination; 

(c) “examination authority” means an examination authority as specified in the 

Schedule or such other authority as may be specified by the State Government 

by notification in the Official Gazette;  

(d) “examination center” means such premises, as may be specified by the 

examination authority to conduct public examination; 

(e) “inspection team” means persons authorised by the examination authority to 

inspect any examination center; 

(f) “organized crime” means an unlawful activity committed by a person or a group 

of persons indulging in unfair means to pursue or promote a shared interest for 

wrongful gains; 

(g) “public examination” means any examination conducted by the examination 

authority as specified in the Schedule or conducted by such other authority as 

may be notified by the State Government under clause (c);  

(h) “Schedule” means the Schedule appended to this Act; 

(i) “State Government” means the Government of Gujarat; 

(j) “supervisory staff” includes persons authorised by the examination authority to 

conduct public examination; 

(k) “unfair means” includes,- 

(i) in relation to any person including an examinee, 

(a)  to impersonate or leak or attempt to leak or conspire to leak; or  

(b)  to procure or attempt to procure or possess or attempt to possess 

question paper in unauthorised manner; or  

(c) to solve or attempt to solve or seek assistance to solve or to assist 

to solve question paper in unauthorised manner; 

(ii) directly or indirectly assists the examinee in any manner whatsoever, in 

the public examination for monetary or wrongful gains, in relation to any 

person other than examinee. 

3. No person shall use or indulge in any unfair means in any public examination or the 

conduct of public examination.   

 

4.     (1)  If the examinee, during the public examination, takes an unauthorised help from any 

person directly or indirectly or from any material written, recorded, copied or printed, 

in any form whatsoever, or use of any unauthorised electronic or mechanical 

instrument or gadget, he shall be referred to the examination authority and the 

decision of the examination authority in such case shall be final.  

(2)  Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, in case an examinee appearing in the 

public examination other than the examination conducted for the recruitment, by the 

Gujarat Secondary and Higher Secondary Education Board or the State Funded 

Universities, has committed any offence under this Act, he shall be referred to the 

Gujarat Secondary and Higher Secondary Education Board or as the case may be, to 

the concerned University and the decision of the Gujarat Secondary and Higher 

Secondary Education Board or concerned University, in this case shall be final.  

Prevention  

of use or 

indulgence  

in unfair  

means. 

 

Unauthorised 

help received by 

the examinee. 



 PART  IV ] GUJARAT GOVERNMENT GAZETTE, EX. 03-03-2023 2-3 

5. No person authorised by virtue of his duties in conduct of public examination shall, before 

the time fixed for opening and distribution of question papers- 

(a) open, leak or procure or attempt to procure, possess or solve such question paper or 

any portion or a copy thereof; or  

(b)  give any confidential information or promise to give such confidential information to 

any person or examinee, where such confidential information is related to or in 

reference to such question paper. 

6. No person who is not lawfully authorised or permitted by virtue of his duties to do so, shall, 

before the time fixed for the distribution of question papers-  

 

 

(a)  procure or attempt to procure or possess, such question paper or answer sheet or 

OMR sheet or any portion or copy thereof in any form; or  

(b)  impart or offer to impart, such information which he knows or has reason to believe to 

be related to, or derived from or to have a bearing upon such question paper. 

7.  No person, who is entrusted or engaged with any work pertaining to public examination 

shall, except where he is permitted by virtue of his duties so to do, directly or indirectly 

reveal or cause to be revealed or make known to any other person any information or part 

thereof which has come to his knowledge by virtue of the work being so entrusted to him. 

8.  No person who is not entrusted or engaged with the work pertaining to the public 

examination or conduct of public examination or who is not an examinee, shall enter the 

premises of the examination centre. 

9. No person who is entrusted or engaged with the work pertaining to the public examination 

shall use or cause to be used any place, other than the examination centre, for the purpose 

of holding public examination.  

 

10. (1)  Whenever an offence under this Act has been committed by the Management or 

Institution or Limited Liability Partnership or others, every person who at the time the 

offence was committed, was in-charge of, or was accountable to the Management or 

Institution or Limited Liability Partnership or others for the conduct of the business of 

the Management or Institution or Limited Liability Partnership or others, shall be 

guilty of the offence and shall be liable to be proceeded against and punished 

accordingly:  

Provided that nothing contained in this sub-section shall render any such 

person liable to any punishment under this Act, if he proves that the offence was 

committed without his knowledge and that he exercised all due diligence to prevent the 

commission of such offence. 

(2)  Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (1), where an offence under this 

Act has been committed by the Management or Institution or Limited Liability 

Partnership or others and it is proved that the offence has been committed with the 

consent or connivance of, or is attributable to any neglect on the part of, any director, 

partner, manager, secretary or other officer of the Management or Institution or 

Limited Liability Partnership or others, such director, partner, manager, secretary or 

other officer shall also be guilty of the offence and shall be liable to be proceeded 

against and punished accordingly. 

Unauthorised 

possession or 

disclosure of  

question paper  

and answer 

sheet or  

OMR sheet  

in any form. 

 

Prevention of 

leakage by  

person entrusted  

or engaged with 
examination  

work. 

Prohibition  

to enter 

 examination 

centre. 

 

 No place other 

than examination  

center shall be 

used for public 

examination. 

 

Offence by 

management, 

institution or 

others. 

Unauthorised 

possession and 

disclosure of 

question paper. 

 



2-4 GUJARAT GOVERNMENT GAZETTE, EX. 03-03-2023 [ PART  IV 

11. No person who is on the management or on the staff of an institution which is being used 

for the holding of a public examination, or who is entrusted with any work pertaining to 

public examination, shall provide any help or assistance to an examinee in using unfair 

means in the public examination. 

12. (1)  Any examinee indulging in unfair means shall be punished with imprisonment for a 

term which may extend to three years and shall also be liable to fine, which shall not 

be less than one lakh rupees and in case of default of payment of fine, such examinee 

shall also be punished with imprisonment in accordance with the provisions of the 

Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973.  

(2)  If any person obstructs or threatens any member of the inspection team, supervisory 

staff, examination authority, officer or person appointed by the examination authority 

for performing duty or from entering any examination centre, he shall be punished 

with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years and with fine which 

shall not be less than one lakh rupees and in case of default of payment of fine, such 

person shall also be punished with imprisonment in accordance with the provisions of 

the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973.  

(3)   If any person, including examinee, whether entrusted or authorized with the conduct of 

public examination or not, in conspiracy or otherwise indulges or attempts to indulge 

in unfair means or contravenes or abets to contravene any of the provisions of this Act, 

shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than five years 

but which may extend to imprisonment of ten years and shall also be liable to fine 

which shall not be less than ten lakh rupees but which may extend to one crore rupees 

and in case of default of payment of fine, such person shall also be punished with 

imprisonment in accordance with the provision of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973: 

Provided that the Court may for any adequate and special reasons to be 

recorded in writing impose a sentence of imprisonment for a term of less than five 

years. 

(4)  If any person in an organized crime in conspiracy with the examination authority or 

otherwise indulges or attempts to indulge in unfair means or contravenes or abets to 

contravene any of the provisions of this Act, he shall be punished with imprisonment 

for a term which shall not be less than seven years and may extend to ten years and 

with fine which shall not be less than one crore rupees and in case of default of 

payment of fine, such person shall also be punished with imprisonment in accordance 

with the provision of  the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973.  

13. An examinee who has been convicted of an offence under the provisions of this Act shall 

be debarred from any public examination for a period of two years.    

14.  In case of conviction of a person in an organized crime in conspiracy with the examination 

authority or otherwise indulges or attempts to indulge in unfair means or contravenes or 

abets to contravene any of the provisions of this Act, the court shall make an order of 

recovery of any wrongful gains made by such person, by way of attachment and sale of any 

of the assets/property, moveable, or immovable, or both, of such person by following the 

procedure laid down in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973.  

15. If any person of the Management or Institution or Limited Liability Partnership or others 

has been found guilty of the offences under this Act, the Management or Institution or 

Limited Liability Partnership or others shall be liable to pay all cost and expenditure related 

to the public examination, determined by the Court and shall be banned forever. 

16. Every person engaged in the conduct of the public examination, while acting or purporting 

to act in pursuance of the provisions of this Act or rules made thereunder, be deemed to be 

a public servant within the meaning of section 21 of the Indian Penal Code. 

Prohibition  

to assist. 

Offences  

and 

penalties. 

2 of 1974. 

2 of 1974. 

2 of 1974. 

2 of 1974. 

Debarred on 

conviction. 

Attachment 

and 

confiscation  

of property. 

Liabilities of 

Management 

etc. to pay all 

cost and 

expenditure. 

2 of 1974. 

Public servant. 

45 of 1860. 



Government Central Press, Gandhinagar.

 PART  IV ] GUJARAT GOVERNMENT GAZETTE, EX. 03-03-2023 2-5 

17. All offences specified under this Act, shall be cognizable, non-bailable and non–

compoundable. 

 

18. Any offence committed under this Act shall be investigated by the Police Officer not below 

the rank of Police Inspector but preferably by the Deputy Superintendent of Police.  

19. The provisions of this Act shall be in addition to, and not in derogation of, any other law in 

force on the subject.  

20. No suit, prosecution or other legal proceeding shall lie against the State Government or any 

person for anything which is in good faith done or intended to be done under this Act or the 

rules made thereunder for the conduct of public examination. 

21. (1)  The State Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules to carry 

out the purposes of this Act.  

(2)  All rules made under this section shall be laid for not less than thirty days before the 

State Legislature as soon as may be they are made, and shall be subject to rescission 

by the State Legislature or to such modification as the State Legislature may make, 

during the session in which they are so laid or the session immediately following. 

(3)  Any rescission or modification so made by the State Legislature shall be published in 

the Official Gazette, and shall thereupon take effect. 

22. (1)  If any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this Act, the State 

Government may, within a period of two years from the commencement of this Act, 

by an order published in the Official Gazette, make such provisions not inconsistent 

with the provisions of this Act, as may appear to it to be necessary or expedient for 

removal of difficulty. 

(2)   Every order made under this section shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made, 

before the House of the State Legislature. 

SCHEDULE 

(See section 2(c)) 

1. The Gujarat Public Service Commission.  

2. The Gujarat High Court.  

3. The Gujarat Subordinate Services Selection Board. 

4. The Gujarat Panchayat Service Selection Board. 

5. The State Examination Board. 

6. Any other authority or agency or recruitment committee or Board engaged or 

constituted by the State Government.  

7. State Funded Universities.  

8. The Gujarat Secondary and Higher Secondary Education Board.  

9. Public Sector Undertaking owned by the State Government.  

10. Any Societies, Corporations, Local Bodies and all PSU’s owned substantially or 

partially by the State Government.    

--------------- 

 

Investigation of 

the offences. 

Application of 

other laws not 

barred. 

Protection of 

action taken in 

good faith. 

Power to  

remove 

difficulties. 

Power to 

make 

rules. 

Offences to be 

cognizable,  

non-bailable  

and non-

compoundable. 

Signed by:BHOLUSINGH G THAKUR
Date: 2023.03.17 08:26:52 +05:30
Reason: Validate Document
Location: Government Central Press,
Gandhinagar

Signature Not Verified