Jharkhand: Move to Scrap 22 Exams Ends Youth Agitation but Sparks Disquiet Among Recruits

New Delhi: After the Jharkhand government moved to ‘cancel’ the outcome of 22 recruitment examinations in view of complaints of irregularities, youth protesters in the state on Wednesday (August 20) called off their weeks-long agitation against paper leaks and exam corruption.

As the Hemant Soren administration's move is poised to impact the careers of those who cleared these exams and secured government jobs, a number of these individuals have filed petitions before the Jharkhand high court challenging the decision and also staged protests on Wednesday.

On Tuesday night the Soren government issued a series of orders ‘cancelling’ the outcome of 22 recruitment exams, postponing six other examinations and ordering an investigation into 17 other tests. According to ThePrint, the 22 cancelled exams were conducted between 2023 and earlier this year.

They include the Combined Graduate Level (CGL) exam conducted by the Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission (JSSC) as well as the 11th, 12th and 13th iterations of the Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC)-held civil services examination.

The JPSC-JSSC Reform Manch, one of the two main bodies leading the protests, announced on Wednesday that it was putting its agitation on hold for two months. The other group, the JPSC JSSC Abhyarthi Nyay Manch, also reportedly said it is ending its agitation.

“We are not ending our agitation, we are deferring it,” said Ravindra Paswan of the Reform Manch at a press conference. He called on the Soren government to ‘expose all exam mafias’ in the state and cancel the results of all compromised tests within two months' time, failing which he said his outfit would resume its protests.

But the government's move has sparked consternation among those who cleared the now-cancelled exams. Around 2,000 such individuals, particularly those who were recruited to government jobs through the JSSC-CGL, have protested the decision, per PTI. Several people have also filed petitions before the Jharkhand high court.

Speaking to the Indian Express, 32-year-old government employee Chanda Kumari, who had cleared the CGL exam, said from outside the secretariat: “We used to show our ID cards at the gate, and the police personnel would recognise us and let us enter … Today, unfortunately, the same people are pushing us away.”

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