J’khand protests: Soren accepts students’ demands

Chief Minister Hemant Soren of Jharkhand accepted the demands of protesting students on Monday, announcing that the state Cabinet had decided to cancel the JSSC-CGL examination, a significant blow to the recruitment process marred by allegations of irregularities. The decision came after weeks of demonstrations by students and job aspirants demanding action over alleged irregularities in state recruitment exams.

The protesters also sought the cancellation and re-conduct of the preliminary civil services examination and a probe into suspected malpractice in recruitment tests. In Ranchi, Soren stated that the government had decided to cancel all activities associated with TDPL, including examinations, results, selections, and all other related activities.

The protests began in late July, intensifying as candidates raised allegations of irregularities in recruitment exams, demanding an investigation by the CBI and a fast-track court to handle cases of alleged malpractice. The controversy escalated following the release of preliminary civil services exam results, with some candidates questioning the results for possible manipulation.

The state government had initially claimed that the allegations were being investigated by the CID. Soren's announcement on Monday effectively acknowledged the protesters' call for action on the disputed recruitment process, paving the way for the examination and related outcomes to be officially scrapped.