Jharkhand exam stir turns violent as police clash with students, JMM workers

The student protest over alleged irregularities in Jharkhand’s recruitment examinations turned violent in Ranchi on Friday after a scuffle broke out between police and demonstrators who had gathered to burn effigies of Chief Minister Hemant Soren and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. The protesters, led by the JPSC-JSSC Reforms Manch, accused the state government of failing to address their concerns over transparency and alleged malpractice in recruitment exams.

A large number of students assembled at Albert Chowk for the protest. Police said the situation deteriorated after the demonstrators deviated from the route designated for the march and moved towards the Jharkhand Public Service Commission office, disrupting traffic.

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police station officer-in-charge Rupesh Kumar Singh said repeated requests to follow the prescribed route were ignored.

"The students changed the route defined for the march and the effigy burning. They went to the JPSC office and brought traffic to a halt there. The agitators did not listen to our repeated pleas to adhere to the designated route," news agency PTI quoted Singh as saying.

According to officials, police intervened to control the gathering, leading to a confrontation with the protesters.

Student leaders, however, alleged that they were prevented from holding a peaceful demonstration. "They cannot stop us from holding peaceful and democratic protests," JPSC-JSSC Reforms Manch leader Ravindra Paswan said.