Jharkhand protests: Students march to Assembly in Ranchi, Ex-CM Babulal Marandi detained

Ranchi: In continuation with their protests over alleged irregularities in the JPSC and JSSC examinations, student protesters in Ranchi marched towards the Assembly on Monday. The police have detained Leader of the Opposition Babulal Marandi, State President Aditya Sahu, and several other party leaders, while staging a sit-in outside Chief Minister Hemant Soren’s residence.

Speaking to the media after being detained, Marandi said, “Students are continuing their protest, but the government is diverting public attention. There should be a CBI inquiry into all these matters—JPSC, JSSC, and CGL.”

Earlier in the day, party workers led by Marandi and BJP leader Aditya Sahu staged a sit-in outside the Chief Minister’s residence. The party has demanded a CBI probe into the alleged irregularities in the exams. During the protest, Babulal Marandi stated, “For the past 14-15 days, these students have been on a hunger strike at the stadium, yet the government is stalling the issue.” So far, 19 people have been arrested in connection with the alleged irregularities in the JPSC examinations.

Protesters break through police barricades

In the meantime, a large number of protesters gathered near the old Legislative Assembly building in Ranchi. While initially the march was peaceful, protesters soon broke through police barricades near the old Assembly building and started moving towards the new Assembly complex.

Reacting to the development, Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) MP Mahua Maji said, “Yesterday, a meeting took place between the students, a delegation, and state ministers. Immediately after the meeting, both the students and the ministers stated that 98% of the demands had been accepted. The students had agreed to this as well, but later—perhaps at the behest of certain political parties that are pushing them—the protest is taking place today.”

“The remaining 2 percent of the students’ demands hinge on a specific exam—the results of which were declared following Supreme Court and High Court orders, and which led to many people securing jobs. The government cannot cancel that exam without a court order. The government is urging students not to hold protest marches,” she added.

Jharkhand Govt claims to accept most of protesters’ demands

Meanwhile, the Jharkhand government has claimed to have accepted “98 percent of the protesters’ demands,” a claim the protesters dispute. The government has agreed to cancel the 14th JPSC exam. Apart from this, it has proposed an ED investigation into alleged financial irregularities in the JPSC exam. The state government also announced the formation of a fast-track court, which has been tasked with filing a charge sheet within 90 days.