Jharkhand HC stays cancellation of more job exams; protesters scuffle with police in Ranchi, elsewhere

RANCHI: Clashes broke out between police and students protesting alleged irregularities in Jharkhand recruitment exams in Ranchi and a few other districts on Friday, while the high court stayed notifications cancelling the appointments of Child Development Project Officers and those recruited through the JSSC-CGL tests.

The confrontation between security personnel and the protesters took place when members of the ‘JPSC-JSSC Reforms Manch’ marched towards the JPSC office here, disrupting traffic, police said.

The agitators had gathered at Albert Chowk to burn effigies of Chief Minister Hemant Soren and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, to protest against job exam “anomalies” and what they called “betrayal” by the state government by not strongly defending cases in the high court.

Police said it used mild force to disperse the demonstrators after the scuffle broke out in Ranchi.

The protesters also created a law-and-order situation near Sadar Hospital, prompting intervention to prevent inconvenience to patients, an officer said.

Ranchi City Deputy SP, KV Raman, said the students protested in front of the JPSC office without permission.

Officer-in-charge of Lalpur Police Station, Rupesh Kumar Singh, said the scuffle broke out after the protesting students changed the designated route and brought traffic to a halt.

The agitating students, however, alleged that the police and ruling JMM workers tried to prevent their peaceful stir, and that female protesters were also assaulted.

A student leader claimed that core committee member Kunal was detained and later taken to hospital after he fainted during the march.

Similar clashes were reported in Hazaribag and Giridih, where JMM workers allegedly confronted students attempting to burn effigies of Soren and Gandhi.

The JMM alleged that the BJP was trying to exploit the recruitment exam-related issues.

JMM general secretary Vinod Pandey asserted that the saffron party was "all out to destroy the social fabric of Jharkhand", and was using students to further its political interests.

The protests followed the state government's August 18 decision to cancel 22 recruitment examinations conducted since 2014 by the JPSC, JSSC and outsourced agency TDPL, and ordering probes into 23 others, amid a 25-day agitation over the alleged irregularities.

Around 2,700 successful candidates, including JSSC-CGL recruits, have been protesting, arguing that those selected on merit should not lose their jobs because of examination “irregularities”.

The Jharkhand High Court's orders have provided significant interim relief to them.

On Thursday, it stayed notifications cancelling appointments made through the 11th and 13th JPSC examinations and those of Food Safety Officers, while a bench of Justice Deepak Roshan on Friday stayed the cancellation of JSSC-CGL appointments and CDPO recruitments.

Meanwhile, Leader of Opposition Babulal Marandi accused the government of using force against students, while former chief minister Champai Soren termed the alleged crackdown in Ranchi, Hazaribag and Giridih unfortunate, and said it violated the students' democratic rights.

In a post on X, Marandi alleged: “The JMM-Congress was not satisfied even after selling off the jobs of Jharkhand's poor, dalit, and tribal students; to weaken their struggle, they tried to sow discord, applied pressure, and put on a show of canceling the exams.”

“Rahul Gandhi ji, your duplicitous attitude will be exposed before the students of the country. These students are not heirs to a legacy like you and Hemant Soren… They will secure their rights,” he said.

The ‘JPSC-JSSC Reforms Manch’ has also questioned the government's handling of the court proceedings, alleging that senior law officers were not present to effectively contest the petitions.

JLKM leader Devendra Nath Mahto announced a 'Recruitment System Reforms Yatra' from August 24, and warned of a possible gherao of the chief minister's residence if the government failed to effectively defend its position before the high court on September 15.

Widening its probe into the alleged exam irregularities, the CID on Friday urged the public to furnish any information available regarding the “anomalies”.

The CID's Special Investigation Team has so far questioned 37 suspects in connection with the alleged irregularities in the 2023 JSSC Graduate Level Combined Competitive Examination.