RANCHI, Aug 19: The 26-day-long agitation by students demanding action over alleged irregularities in Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC) and Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission (JSSC) examinations was called off after the state government cancelled 22 recruitment examinations and ordered investigations into alleged irregularities in 45 exams.
The protesting students have given the government 60 days to complete the investigations and warned that they would resume their agitation if the probes were found to be unfair or inadequate.
Following the government’s decision, the students organised an ‘Aabhaar Yatra’ from Jaipal Singh Munda Stadium to Albert Ekka Chowk in Ranchi on Wednesday. Prominent protest leader Devendra Nath Mahato also joined the march after ending his 16-day hunger strike.
The government’s decision, however, has opened a fresh front of protests, with candidates who were appointed through some of the cancelled examinations opposing the move.
The cancellation has affected the appointments of 2,628 candidates, including those selected through the JSSC-CGL examination. Several appointed candidates staged protests outside the Jharkhand Secretariat and Project Bhawan, expressing concern over their jobs and future.
The protesting employees argued that they had cleared the examinations through the prescribed selection process and said that if irregularities had taken place, action should be taken against those responsible rather than cancelling the appointments and careers of candidates who were selected.
The protests intensified after some candidates reportedly breached barricades and entered the Project Building premises, following which security arrangements were strengthened around the government complex.
The controversy has also drawn political reactions. Leader of Opposition Babulal Marandi questioned the impartiality of the investigations and reiterated his demand for a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the alleged irregularities in the JPSC-JSSC examinations.
With the students suspending their agitation for the next 60 days while awaiting the outcome of the investigations, the government now faces the challenge of addressing concerns of both the protesting aspirants and candidates whose appointments have been affected.
The cancellation of examinations, demands for an independent probe and protests by appointed candidates indicate that the controversy surrounding Jharkhand’s recruitment examination system is likely to continue despite the students’ decision to temporarily call off their agitation.
