New Delhi: Former Jamshedpur MP and senior Congress leader Dr Ajoy Kumar has come out in support of students protesting against alleged irregularities, corruption and paper leaks in recruitment examinations conducted by the Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC) and the Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission (JSSC). He has urged the state government to address the students’ concerns and bring greater transparency to the recruitment process.
In a post on X, Kumar appealed to the Hemant Soren-led government to respond to the students’ demands with sensitivity, saying the future of Jharkhand’s youth depends on a fair and credible recruitment system.
“The future of Jharkhand’s youth rests on the JPSC and JSSC examinations. I humbly appeal to the government to consider the legitimate demands of students with sensitivity. A transparent and time-bound examination system is essential for the state’s and the country’s development,” he wrote.
Kumar also called for the formation of a committee headed by a sitting High Court judge to investigate the matter. He further demanded the registration of an FIR, cancellation of all examination results declared so far, and fresh examinations to be conducted in a transparent manner.
A former Lok Sabha MP from Jamshedpur, Dr Ajoy Kumar has also served as the president of the Jharkhand Pradesh Congress Committee.
Meanwhile, the students’ protest in Ranchi entered its 12th day on Wednesday. Demonstrators have been camping at Jaipal Singh Munda Stadium, where student leader Devendra Nath Mahto has been on an indefinite hunger strike for the past four days.
The protesters have warned that they will gherao the Jharkhand Assembly on August 6 if the government fails to address their demands.
Among their key demands are the cancellation of the 14th JPSC Combined Civil Services Preliminary Examination, a CBI and Enforcement Directorate (ED) investigation into alleged irregularities in the JPSC and JSSC-CGL recruitment exams, and the release of OMR sheets, main examination answer scripts and category-wise cut-off marks.
They have also sought the blacklisting of controversial examination agencies and sweeping reforms in recruitment bodies to ensure transparency and prevent future irregularities.
The students argue that repeated allegations of paper leaks and examination malpractice have jeopardised the careers of deserving candidates and severely undermined public trust in the recruitment system.
As part of the ongoing investigation, the Jharkhand CID on Monday carried out simultaneous raids at several locations across Ranchi, Dhanbad, Bokaro, Deoghar, Godda, Ramgarh and Hazaribagh. During the searches, officials seized laptops, mobile phones, bank documents, carbon copies of OMR sheets, admit cards and other documents, all of which are now undergoing forensic and technical examination.
The protesters have reiterated that their agitation will continue until concrete action is taken to restore transparency and credibility to the state’s recruitment examination process.
With inputs from IANS