Jharkhand student protest: Govt opens fresh talks as aspirants allege ‘divide and rule’

Ranchi: The Jharkhand government is set to hold another round of talks with students protesting alleged irregularities in recruitment examinations, even as a prominent group of aspirants accused the government of trying to fragment the movement and divert attention from their core demands.

What is the protest about?

The protests, which entered their 15th day on Saturday, began after the results of the 14th Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC) Civil Services Preliminary Examination were announced on July 5. Aspirants have since been holding round-the-clock protests and an indefinite sit-in at the Jaipal Singh Munda Stadium in Ranchi, demanding transparency and accountability in the recruitment process.

The JPSC-JSSC Reforms Manch, which has been spearheading the agitation, has demanded the cancellation of the 14th JPSC Civil Services Examination and several examinations conducted by the Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission (JSSC), a CBI probe into alleged irregularities, action against those involved, disclosure of category-wise cut-offs and OMR and response sheets, and a recruitment calendar on the lines of UPSC and SSC.

Government holds talks with multiple student groups

The government held several meetings with different student organisations on Saturday after an 11-member delegation of protesting JPSC and JSSC aspirants met Jharkhand Minister Sudivya Kumar Sonu on Friday. The delegation included eight student representatives, a lawyer and two technical experts.

Following the discussions, the government announced that a fresh round of talks with protesting students would be held at noon on Sunday.

Rural Development Minister Dipika Pandey Singh said a government panel had briefed Chief Minister Hemant Soren about the demands and concerns raised during the meetings.

"It was decided in the meeting with the chief minister that a final round of talks with the protesting students will take place at 12 pm on Sunday," she said.

The decision followed a four-hour meeting between the government panel and the chief minister on Saturday evening.

The government panel, comprising ministers Dipika Pandey Singh, Sudivya Kumar, Chamra Linda and Sanjay Prasad Yadav, held separate meetings with various student groups, including the Congress' student wing National Students' Union of India (NSUI), Jharkhand Chhatra Morcha (JCM) and Adivasi Chhatra Sangh (ACS).

The government said the discussions were held in a positive atmosphere and that it was considering the concerns raised by the protesting aspirants. Higher and Technical Education Minister Sudivya Kumar also said the government had released a dedicated email ID to collect suggestions from students and stakeholders on reforms to the recruitment process.

Student leaders accuse government of dividing movement

However, the multiple meetings triggered a sharp response from the JPSC-JSSC Reforms Manch.

Student leader Ravindra Paswan accused the government of attempting to create divisions within the movement by engaging with different organisations.

"This is political manoeuvring by the government. It is trying to create a divide among students and divert attention. But they should know that all students are united," Paswan said at a press conference at the protest site.

He alleged that the government was accepting memoranda from organisations that had not been part of the ongoing agitation.

"What we have witnessed from the government's side today has left us very upset. Look at the game the government is playing: today, they accepted memoranda from about 6-7 other organisations. Why are they doing this? What is their intention?" he said.

Questioning the government's decision to receive a memorandum from NSUI, Paswan said, "Why are they taking memoranda from NSUI? NSUI is the Congress student wing. What kind of demands would they make? Why are they not on the street protesting against the government?"

"The government is playing games, trying to fragment this movement into 2-3 different factions," he alleged.

Paswan said the Reforms Manch had already placed its demands before the five-member government panel during a detailed meeting on Friday night.

"We called this press conference to address the confusion being spread in Jharkhand. We have been staging an indefinite sit-in protest for the past 15 days. We received an invitation from the government for a delegation meeting, and our first round of talks with the government delegation concluded yesterday, during which we presented our demands in detail and with logical reasoning, specifically which exams we are demanding be cancelled and the reasons behind it. We are demanding a CBI investigation and are calling for reforms," Paswan said.

According to Paswan, the government delegation listened to the demands and assured the students that they would be placed before Chief Minister Hemant Soren, following which the students would be invited for another round of talks.

"The government delegation listened to our demands very carefully and stated that they would place them before the Chief Minister for consideration and invite us for a second round of talks," he said.

The government panel also met a faction led by Jharkhand Loktantrik Krantikari Morcha leader Devendra Nath Mahto, whose fast over the issue entered its seventh day. The JCM submitted five demands, including cancellation of the 14th JPSC Civil Services Examination. NSUI submitted six demands, including a CID probe into JPSC and JSSC examinations under suspicion within 90 days and the establishment of a Jharkhand Testing Agency on the lines of the National Testing Agency.

ACS leader Kartik Oraon demanded that tribal and regional languages be included as qualifying papers in recruitment examinations and that tests in which irregularities were found be cancelled.

August 10 Assembly march

Despite the talks, the main protest group has said its agitation will continue until its demands are met. Paswan warned that a large-scale march to the Jharkhand Assembly would take place on August 10 if the government failed to accept the demands.

"All the students of Jharkhand stand united on a single platform. The government must accept our legitimate demands as soon as possible; otherwise, for the 'Vidhan Sabha March' we have announced for the 10th, 50,000-100,000 students from across Jharkhand will arrive, and that protest will be decisive," he said.

"This is what we want to convey to the government. Accountability must be fixed that day, and you will have to officially endorse our demands," he added.

Student leader Sheetal Tirki also appealed to students to remain united and participate in the proposed march.

"I want to convey a message to all the genuine students here: we have been staging protests and hunger strikes for a long time, so I urge everyone not to let themselves be led astray. We must stand united and remain steadfast in our demands. If we lose our way now, future generations will remain lost forever," Tirki told reporters.

"We must stand together; I call upon all my brothers and sisters to unite. On the 10th, we will gather in large numbers to participate in a march to the Legislative Assembly (Vidhan Sabha) to show the government that we are neither broken nor weak, for our demands are legitimate," she said.

Tirki said the students had submitted evidence-backed demands to the government and urged more aspirants to join the march.

"We have presented our demands to the government, backed by evidence, and I urge them to understand that we are not asking for anything unreasonable. We must unite for this cause, and I call upon everyone to come and join the March toward the Legislative Assembly on the 10th," she added.

The agitation has also seen the involvement of other student organisations. The All India Students' Association (AISA) set up a separate platform at the stadium on Saturday, though its leaders said this should not be seen as a separate agitation. Its members said they would participate in the August 10 march without carrying the AISA banner.

The Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) has also held protests over the issue. Its members scuffled with police while attempting to cross barricades near the chief minister's residence during a march on Friday. Around eight to 10 ABVP protesters were detained and later released, according to Deputy Superintendent of Police (Headquarters) Ajay Aryan. The ABVP has announced a separate Vidhan Sabha march for August 11.

Meanwhile, students and job aspirants marked the death anniversary of martyr Nirmal Mahto by marching from the protest site to Albert Ekka Chowk and holding a flashlight procession, while reiterating their demands.

The recruitment examination controversy has also led to arrests. Nineteen people have so far been arrested in connection with alleged irregularities in JPSC examinations, while former panel chairperson L Khiangte has been questioned four times since July 28.

With the government preparing for another round of talks on Sunday, the protesters have made it clear that the agitation will continue unless their demands are addressed.