The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) has thrown its weight behind the ongoing student agitation in Jharkhand on Saturday, as a party delegation arrived in state capital Ranchi to extend support to protesters demanding action over alleged irregularities and paper leaks in recruitment examinations.
CJP spokesperson Ashutosh Ranka confirmed the development, saying the organisation stood in “complete solidarity” with the protesting students and vowed to provide them with “all forms of support”.
A visual from the Jharkhand protest
The delegation, led by Mukesh and Akshay Shinde, reached Jharkhand as the agitation continued despite talks between student groups and the state government.
Talks with govt fail to yield fruit
The Jharkhand government held discussions with several student organisations earlier on Saturday amid the intensifying agitation over alleged paper leaks and irregularities in recruitment examinations.
However, the meetings failed to resolve the impasse, with protesting aspirants deciding to continue their agitation until their demands were addressed.
CJP spokesperson Ashutosh Ranka
A five-member government panel comprising state ministers first met a group of protesters led by JLKM leader Devendra Nath Mahto, whose hunger strike over the issue entered its seventh day.
The panel subsequently held separate meetings with delegations from the Congress-backed National Students’ Union of India (NSUI), Adivasi Chhatra Sangh (ACS) and Jharkhand Chhatra Morcha (JCM). On Friday night, the government had held similar discussions with representatives of the JPSC/JSSC Reforms Manch.
State minister Sanjay Prasad Yadav, a member of the government panel, said after the meetings, “Demands of protesting aspirants are genuine; we will place them before the state’s Chief Minister (CM) Hemant Soren.”
Student groups put forth these demands
The ruling Jharkhand Mukti Morcha’s (JMM) student wing, JCM, submitted five demands to the government panel, including cancellation of the 14th Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC) Civil Services Examination.
Meanwhile, the NSUI presented six demands, its spokesperson Sanjiv Shah said. These included a CID investigation into all JPSC and Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission (JSSC) examinations facing allegations of irregularities, with the probe to be completed within 90 days.
JCM
The organisation also sought the establishment of a separate panel named Jharkhand Testing Agency (JTA), on the lines of the National Testing Agency (NTA).
On the other hand, Adivasi Chhatra Sangh leader Kartik Oraon demanded that tribal and regional languages be included as qualifying papers in recruitment examinations. He also voiced demands for the cancellation of examinations where irregularities had allegedly been detected.
Protestors refuse to call off stirs
The government panel’s first meeting was with Mahto’s group, the JPSC-JSSC Candidates’ Forum, which lasted around two hours.
A forum leader said the government had assured them that steps would be taken quickly to address their concerns. However, the protestors remained firm on their decision to continue the agitation.
Another still from the protest in Ranchi
The forum leader said, “The government assured us of a quick decision to resolve the issues raised by us. However, our protests will continue until all our demands, including cancellation of the 14th JPSC exam, are fulfilled.”