Ranchi: As outrage over alleged malpractice in Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC), JSSC CGL and other recruitment examinations sharpens, protesting students on Thursday declared they would surround the state Assembly on August 10 unless their key demands are met, ANI reported.
The warning arrives as the Jharkhand Assembly’s Monsoon Session kicks off on Thursday, with the examination controversy expected to dominate political debate.
Protester Radhe Kumar said the plan to gherao the legislature was finalized after government officials initiated contact with the agitators.
“The blockade (gherao) of the Legislative Assembly (Vidhan Sabha) is scheduled for August 10. Yesterday, some government officials, including the SDO, came to meet us, and we conveyed our demands to them. If our demands are not met, hundreds of thousands of us will march to surround the Legislative Assembly on the 10th,” Kumar said.
He said the protesters are demanding that all recruitment examinations conducted through TSR Data Processing Private Limited (TDPL) — including the JPSC and JSSC CGL tests — be cancelled immediately.
“We are surrounding the Assembly because our core demands and issues centre on cancelling the JPSC and CGL examinations. Furthermore, we demand the complete cancellation of every exam conducted under the present government by the agency TDPL. Following these cancellations, we demand a CBI and ED investigation, followed by comprehensive structural reforms in the JSSC, JPSC and CGL examination systems,” he said.
Alleging that students have faced systematic injustice ever since the formation of Jharkhand 26 years ago, Kumar said the agitation would continue until their demands are met.
“It has been 26 years since Jharkhand was created, and throughout these 26 years, students have been suppressed and crushed. Time and again we have launched protests, and time and again efforts were made to crush our movement. But this time in 2026, this movement will not be suppressed,” he said.
State Minister Radhakrishna Kishore, however, said that the government is prepared to discuss all issues with the students and that a team of ministers has been constituted for the purpose.
“A team of Cabinet ministers has been formed to hold discussions with them. The team will listen to the students’ concerns and act as a bridge between the government and the students. The message is clear: the government is committed to the welfare of the state’s youth and students, and to ensuring that they receive justice. I would also like to appeal to the students to begin talks with the government as soon as possible. The government has already conveyed that it is always ready for dialogue, he said.
“Regarding the irregularities in appointments conducted through the Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC) and other recruitment agencies, as well as the irregularities in the overall recruitment process, the state government, under the leadership of CM Hemant Soren, is committed to taking action with great sensitivity. This commitment is evident from the steps the government has already taken. Most importantly, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, have also taken this issue very seriously,” he added.
Students have been staging continuous protests in Ranchi over alleged irregularities in recruitment examinations, demanding cancellation of the tests, an independent probe into the alleged lapses, and sweeping reforms in the state’s recruitment framework.
The state government has extended an invitation to the agitating students for negotiations, but the protesters have vowed to keep their agitation going until their demands are fully met.