Bihar: Stone-pelting, lathi-charge, water cannons mark students' protest over BPSC exams

PATNA: Thousands of students fought a pitched battle with the Bihar Police here on Tuesday, hurling stones and braving water cannons and lathi-charge, upon being prevented from marching to the chief minister's residence to air their grievances.

The protesters, most of them aspirants for Teachers' Recruitment Exams to be conducted by Bihar Public Service Commission (BPSC) next month, had announced a 'Mukhyamantri Awas gherao' to press the demand for holding the written exams in a single stage, instead of prelims followed by mains.

A section of the protesters also demanded the cancellation of Combined Competitive Exams held by the commission earlier this year, alleging that the tests were marred by "irregularities".

They were joined by a number of Left-wing activists, owing allegiance to organisations like SFI and DYFI, in the procession that began at the historic Gandhi Maidan, which has witnessed many upheavals in the near and recent past.

Tight security arrangements were in place along the nearly 5-km stretch from Gandhi Maidan to the chief minister's residence, and police used water cannons at J P Golambar, the starting point of the procession, only to behold the protesters break into a "rain dance", in a stark reminder of the scenes witnessed last month when a 'Raj Bhavan march' was staged last month in support of the 'Gen Z protests' held at Jantar Mantar in Delhi.

"We repeatedly urged the crowd to maintain peace. We told them that we will help them send a delegation to authorities concerned to register their demands. Water cannons were used when the situation became tense," Patna Senior Superintendent of Police Kartikeya Sharma said.

The protesters broke past the barricades to reach Dak Bungalow crossing, the city's busiest thoroughfare that leads to the Patna Junction as well as vital installations like Patna High Court and the Income Tax Office.

Videos have gone viral on social media of the lathi-charge that took place at Dak Bungalow crossing, where many of the agitators also hurled stones at the police personnel.

In one such video, a young officer could be seen slapping a protester, while another clip showed a female agitator fainting by the roadside, though it was not known whether she was knocked unconscious by an injury or whether it was dehydration caused by humid weather.

Several protesters were detained and taken away to various locations by the police, though the number of such persons and other details were not known.

"The situation is now under control. Traffic movement is also being restored. Once the road is completely cleared, we will ascertain the number of detainees. Some people tried to resort to violence, which we prevented. We will examine camera footage to ascertain whether anti-social elements were involved. Some people have been injured, but our priority is to restore normal traffic," the SSP said.

Many of the protesters were also heard venting spleen against a remark by BPSC examination controller Rakesh Kumar Singh on Monday when he had allegedly belittled the agitators, who had been staging a dharna at Gardani Bagh for several weeks, by using the Hindi proverb "Hathi chale bazaar, kutta bhunke hazaar".

The protesters said the BPSC must not only address their grievances with regard to the examination system but also act against the foul-mouthed examination controller, "who had likened them to barking dogs".

Singh's remarks had drawn sharp criticism from opposition leaders like RJD working president Tejashwi Yadav and the examination controller issued a video statement voicing regret and asserting, "I just used a proverb. It was not my intention to offend anybody."

Meanwhile, the CPI(ML) Liberation, the most prominent Left party in Bihar, issued a strongly worded statement condemning the police action and claimed that "the anti-student stance of the BJP is for all to see, from Delhi to Bihar".

"The state government must immediately stop its coercive action and try to resolve the crisis by holding talks with the students and squarely addressing their grievances. The state must also provide medical aid to those injured in the brutal lathi-charge," CPI(ML) Liberation state secretary Kunal said.

CPI(M) state secretary Manoj Chandravanshi, who took part in the march, said, "We were joined by students unions affiliated to various Left parties, as also the NSUI, Youth Congress and Chhatra Rashtriya Janata Dal."

CPI state secretary Ram Naresh Pandey said, "AISF state president Sudhir Kumar is among those held by police. We demand the immediate release of all detainees."