Jharkhand students halt protest, give 2-month ultimatum to Soren govt

Jharkhand students end 26-day protest, demand two-month resolution from Soren government

Students involved in a protest against alleged irregularities in recruitment exams have ended their demonstration and given the Jharkhand government two months to address their concerns. The JPSC-JSSC reforms manch, which led the agitation, announced the suspension of the protest on Wednesday.

The government canceled 22 recruitment exams and initiated an investigation into 23 others since 2014. The students demanded a fair probe into these irregularities following the announcements. They urged the JMM-led government to ensure a thorough investigation into the matter.

Three protesters, Rupesh Kumar Pal, Savita Kumari, and Rahul Kranti, completed a 15-day hunger strike earlier in the week. The manch spokesperson warned that the protesters would launch a fresh, large-scale agitation if their demands were not met within the two-month timeframe.

The cancellation of the exams has also affected candidates who had cleared the Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission Combined Graduate Level (JSSC-CGL) examination and joined government departments. Around 2,000 such candidates protested in Ranchi, arguing that they should not be penalized for the alleged irregularities of others.

The government's decision to cancel the examinations was announced after a cabinet meeting and followed by eight notifications issued late Tuesday. The cancelled exams include tests for drug inspectors, assistant professors in various colleges, lecturers in government polytechnics, and other senior positions in different departments.

The government has proposed a fast-track court for cases involving alleged irregularities in JPSC and JSSC examinations and has formed a committee headed by senior IAS officer Amitabh Kaushal to recommend reforms to the recruitment processes.