Jharkhand Protest: Hundreds of students continued their protest for the sixth consecutive day over alleged irregularities in the 14th Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC) exam, Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission Combined Graduate Level (JSSC-CGL) examination, and other recruitment tests, demanding a CBI probe and reforms in the recruitment agencies.
Student leader Devendra Nath Mahto launched a hunger strike at the protest site in Jaipal Singh Munda Stadium on Sunday, demanding proper investigation by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Enforcement Directorate (ED) into the alleged irregularities in the 14th JPSC examination, JSSC-CGL and other recruitment tests.
Mahto, in a social media post on Sunday, said: “A body breaking from fatigue and now a hunger strike, but in this fight for students’ rights and justice, our resolve remains unshaken.” “The body may tire, but our resolve for justice will not,” he added.
According to a report by the Press Trust of India (PTI), the protesters, who have been holding an indefinite sit-in at a stadium since July 29, raised slogans such as ‘Order CBI probe in JPSC’.
“Paper leaks in JPSC have happened several times. This time, OMR sheets of candidates have been leaked. Chief Minister Hemant Soren has ordered a CID probe, but we are not satisfied,” JPSC aspirant Rahul Kumar Kranti told PTI. He alleged that previous probes into the JSSC CGL paper leak had not led to action and claimed that the latest investigation could also be “covered up” after a few months, as per the report.
“We have completely lost faith in the ongoing CID probe. We demand a CBI probe into all recruitment examinations conducted by the JPSC and JSSC over the past seven years,” Kranti said.
The protesters are demanding cancellation of the 14th JPSC preliminary exam held on April 19 and an independent probe by central agencies, including the CBI and Enforcement Directorate (ED), into alleged irregularities in recruitment examinations conducted by the JPSC and JSSC.
They are also demanding the introduction of a fifth option of “not attempted” in OMR sheets.
As per reports, the protesters have been receiving support from across the country, with people from various cities sending food items through online delivery applications to the protest site.
On Saturday evening, thousands of students held a torchlight vigil in the state capital and demanded an impartial probe into the alleged irregularities in the recruitment examinations, the PTI reported.
