Ranchi, September 8: The Jharkhand unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party on Tuesday organised demonstrations in several districts, demanding withdrawal of police cases registered against students and job aspirants who participated in protests over alleged irregularities in government recruitment examinations.
The party also called for a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into allegations concerning examinations conducted by the Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC) and Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission (JSSC).
BJP workers staged demonstrations outside government offices in six districts. In Ranchi, state BJP president Aditya Sahu led a procession from the Zila School ground to the district collectorate, where party workers raised slogans demanding that cases against the protesting candidates be withdrawn.
The BJP alleged that police action following clashes during protest marches on August 23 had resulted in multiple FIRs against job aspirants.
According to the party, cases were registered against more than 50 identified individuals and over 1,100 unnamed protesters in connection with incidents reported in Ranchi, Giridih and Hazaribag.Sahu alleged that some students were being subjected to police pressure because of their participation in the agitation and demanded an immediate end to such action.
He also accused the recruitment system of being affected by serious irregularities, while calling for an independent investigation.The protests were also led by senior BJP leaders at different locations.
Leader of Opposition Babulal Marandi participated in the demonstration in Dumka, while former chief ministers Raghubar Das and Madhu Koda led programmes in Hazaribag and Jamshedpur respectively. Union Minister of State for Defence Sanjay Seth led the protest in Garhwa.The BJP has announced further demonstrations across the state over the next three days.
According to party leaders, protests are scheduled in several districts on September 9, 10 and 11.The issue follows a 26-day agitation led by the JPSC-JSSC Reforms Manch, which began on July 25 over allegations of irregularities in recruitment examinations.
The agitation was withdrawn after the state government announced on August 18 that several examinations would be cancelled.However, the cancellation has since faced a legal challenge. Successful candidates moved the Jharkhand High Court, expressing concern that cancellation of the examinations could jeopardise their recruitment.
The High Court subsequently stayed the government’s decision concerning certain examinations, including the JSSC-CGL 2023.The JPSC-JSSC Reforms Manch has separately urged the state government to withdraw cases against students involved in the agitation.
The dispute has therefore widened into two related issues — demands for an investigation into alleged irregularities in recruitment examinations and a legal challenge over the cancellation of examinations already conducted.
The allegations of corruption and examination irregularities remain subject to investigation and legal proceedings.
