After Protests End, Modi Prioritises Exam Reforms and Delimitation

New Delhi: A day after students called off their protests against exam paper leaks following the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday announced a high-powered task force on exam reforms, to be led by Infosys co-founder Nandan Nilekani. In an Instagram video, Modi said the government would work to make the examination system more dependable based on the task force’s report.

“For the future of students, the government of India is continuously taking several steps. Those who played with the future of students are rotting in jails. We have established fast-track courts; in Parliament tomorrow (Monday), we are moving towards making a new law with tough provisions. We have to think of the future. That our education system becomes reliable, transparent and uses technology to the maximum,” Modi said.

On Monday, the government is set to introduce an amendment Bill to ensure swift and stringent punishment for those involved in exam paper leaks. The Union Cabinet had approved changes to the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Amendment Bill, 2026, on July 24.

Preparing to counter the Opposition’s offensive on alleged police excesses against the protesters, the government is also focusing on introducing at the earliest the legislative package to operationalise the women’s reservation law and expand the strength of Parliament and state legislatures, sources said.

A senior government functionary said the focus remains on women’s quota law and delimitation. “There is no delay. Our priority is to implement women’s reservation as the Prime Minister has promised,” the official said, when asked if the Jantar Mantar protests had disrupted the government’s plans.

If the Bills are not introduced during the ongoing Monsoon Session, they would have to be brought during the Winter Session later this year, as the Constitution freezes the readjustment of seats only until the first Census conducted after 2026. With the 2027 Census expected to be that Census, the constitutional bar on fresh delimitation would cease thereafter.

‘Business as usual’

Come Monday, it would be “business as usual”, said another senior government functionary. “He (Pradhan) had nothing to do with the (NEET-UGC) paper leak. He has taken moral responsibility and stepped down. That is all there is to it. This has nothing to do with the government’s legislative agenda.”

“What happened beyond the precincts of Parliament, and was taken to its logical conclusion by a slew of measures aimed at regaining the trust of the youth, is different from the legislative agenda which is part of the government’s commitment,” said a BJP insider.

“If anything, the successful redress of the Gen Z and youth protesters’ concerns not just through official assurances but concrete governmental and administrative measures such as the Cabinet’s nod to the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Amendment Bill, 2026, and the complete restructuring of the National Testing Agency (NTA), along with two other significant demands, has only underlined the government’s strong foundation among the people including the youth,” he said.

A senior BJP leader agreed, saying the government’s “reconciliatory approach”, with PM Modi as its face, to a youth-driven movement that had the potential of “snowballing into a negative campaign” had helped its chances of mustering the two-thirds majority required to approve amendments to the Constitution.

The BJP-led NDA was “more than prepared” to take on the Opposition in a debate on exam paper leaks, the BJP functionary said. “For parties which are on the fence regarding supporting the NDA, the government’s swift and satisfactory response (to youth protests) is being seen as a positive,” he added.