Jan Vishwas Bill, 2026: 80 Acts amended to decriminalise minor offences
2 April 2026
The Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Bill, 2026 was passed by the Lok Sabha on 1 April and the Rajya Sabha on 2 April 2026, according to PRS. It amends 80 central Acts, replacing some prison terms and fines with civil penalties and bringing in improvement notices for a first offence under some laws. It replaced a 2025 Bill covering 17 Acts, which a Select Committee examined before it was withdrawn on 17 March 2026.
Background. The first Jan Vishwas Act, of 2023, amended 42 Acts. Decriminalisation rests on the idea that a regulatory lapse need not be a crime: a civil penalty, imposed by an adjudicating officer, can do the job.
Why CLAT asks: Whether every breach of a rule deserves a prison term is a common policy passage, and the Select Committee route is a procedure question.
Source: PRS Bill Track: Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Bill, 2026
Tribunals Reforms Bill, 2026 sets up a National Tribunals Commission
11 August 2026
Passed by the Lok Sabha on 10 August and the Rajya Sabha on 11 August 2026, according to PRS, the Bill repeals the Tribunals Reforms Act, 2021, parts of which the Supreme Court had struck down. It creates a National Tribunals Commission, chaired by a former Supreme Court judge or High Court Chief Justice, with two judicial and two technical members. The Commission runs selection through search-cum-selection committees, reviews tribunals' performance and handles complaints. The government must appoint within three months of a recommendation, and the Chief Justice of India must be consulted on the chairperson and judicial members.
Background. In Madras Bar Association v. Union of India (2021) the Supreme Court struck down provisions of the 2021 tribunals law on tenure and appointments as contrary to judicial independence. Tribunals were provided for by Articles 323A and 323B, added by the 42nd Amendment (1976).
Why CLAT asks: Can Parliament re-enact what the Court struck down? Only by curing the defect the Court found, not by overruling the judgment.
Source: PRS Bill Track: Tribunals Reforms Bill, 2026
Tougher penalties for cheating in public examinations
30 July 2026
The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Amendment Bill, 2026 was passed by the Lok Sabha on 29 July and the Rajya Sabha on 30 July, according to PRS, after NEET 2026 was cancelled in May over an alleged paper leak and held again the next month. Using unfair means now carries five to ten years' imprisonment and a fine of up to ₹50 lakh, up from three to five years and ₹10 lakh. Organised crime carries at least seven years and a fine of at least ₹10 crore. Each State and Union Territory must designate a Special Fast Track Court, and trials must finish within three months of the chargesheet.
Background. The parent Act of 2024 covers exams run by bodies such as the UPSC, SSC, railway recruitment boards, banking boards and the National Testing Agency. PRS flagged that the Supreme Court has held fixed outer time limits for criminal trials impermissible.
Why CLAT asks: A good policy passage: speed and deterrence on one side, fair trial on the other.
Source: PRS Bill Track: Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Amendment Bill, 2026
Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Amendment Bill, 2026
25 March 2026
Passed by the Lok Sabha on 24 March and the Rajya Sabha on 25 March 2026, according to PRS, the Bill amends the 2019 Act. It replaces the Act's definition of a transgender person with a list of covered categories, and, as PRS summarises it, drops trans-men, trans-women and genderqueer persons from that list. A District Magistrate would issue the identity certificate only after a medical board's recommendation. It also adds offences, such as kidnapping or grievous hurt to force someone to assume a transgender identity.
Background. In NALSA v. Union of India (2014) the Supreme Court recognised transgender persons as a 'third gender' and upheld the right to self-identify one's gender under Articles 14, 15, 19 and 21.
Why CLAT asks: Self-identification against state certification is the tension, and NALSA is the case you must name.
Source: PRS Bill Track: Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Amendment Bill, 2026
A new Bankers' Books Evidence law for digital records
10 August 2026
The Bankers' Books Evidence Bill, 2026, passed by the Lok Sabha on 5 August and the Rajya Sabha on 10 August, according to PRS, replaces the Act of 1891, which let certified copies of bank records be used in court without producing the originals. Its main change: an electronic or digital record of a banker's book is admissible if it is a true copy, no unauthorised change of data is detected, and the system has not been tampered with. Bank officers still cannot be compelled to produce books in cases to which the bank is not a party, except on a court order for special cause.
Background. The Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 replaced the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 from 1 July 2024. Its Section 63 carries forward the rules on admitting electronic records, formerly Section 65B.
Why CLAT asks: Admissibility depends on integrity conditions, not on the record being digital. That is the rule a passage will test.
Source: PRS Bill Track: Bankers' Books Evidence Bill, 2026
Online Gaming Rules, 2026 and a new Online Gaming Authority
22 April 2026
On 22 April 2026 the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology notified the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Rules, 2026, in force from 1 May 2026 under the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025. They set up the Online Gaming Authority of India, an attached office of the Ministry, which decides whether a game is an 'online money game', keeps lists of banned money games, registers e-sports and notified games, and hears users' complaints on appeal from the gaming company.
Background. The 2025 Act banned online money games, those played for a stake in expectation of winnings, whether of skill or chance, and promotes e-sports and social games.
Why CLAT asks: The skill-versus-chance distinction has long decided gaming cases. The 2025 Act makes the stake, not the skill, the test.
Sources: Mondaq: Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Rules, 2026; Argus Partners: Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Rules, 2026
Corporate Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026 goes to a Joint Parliamentary Committee
23 March 2026
Introduced in the Lok Sabha on 23 March 2026, the Bill was referred the same day to a Joint Parliamentary Committee, which reported on 3 August, according to PRS. It amends the Companies Act, 2013 and the Limited Liability Partnership Act, 2008: several offences become civil penalties, the net-profit threshold for compulsory CSR spending rises from ₹5 crore to ₹10 crore, and annual general meetings may be held by video conference if a physical meeting is held at least once in three years.
Background. Section 135 of the Companies Act, 2013 made India the first country to mandate corporate social responsibility spending: 2% of average net profit for companies above set thresholds. A Joint Parliamentary Committee is an ad hoc committee of members of both Houses.
Why CLAT asks: Know the three CSR thresholds (net worth, turnover, net profit) and what a JPC is for.
Source: PRS Bill Track: Corporate Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026
