JPSC-JSSC Protesters Set August 18 Deadline, Threaten to Gherao CM Soren's Residence

Ranchi: The agitation by students demanding action over irregularities in Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC) and Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission (JSSC) examinations entered its 24th day on Monday, with protesters escalating their stand and threatening to surround Chief Minister Hemant Soren’s residence in Ranchi on August 20.

The students have set August 18 as the deadline for the state government to address their demands. They said they would stage a dharna outside the Chief Minister’s residence on August 20 if the government failed to act. They also warned that they would demand Soren’s resignation if their demands continued to be ignored.

The demand for the Chief Minister’s resignation marks a new escalation in the agitation, which had so far focused on alleged irregularities in recruitment examinations.

The JPSC-JSSC Reform Manch, which is leading the protest, announced the August 18 deadline in a social media post. The group said that if the government failed to meet the demands by then, protesters would gather outside Soren’s residence and press for their rights.

Reform Manch leader Ravindra Paswan said the protesters were changing their approach after what he described as the government’s failure to respond to their peaceful agitation. He said the movement would now draw inspiration from Bhagat Singh rather than Mahatma Gandhi and asserted that the protesters were prepared to face severe consequences while continuing their struggle.

Paswan demanded that the government cancel the JSSC results, scrap examinations conducted through the TDPL agency and order a CBI investigation into the alleged irregularities. He said these measures should be taken before the August 18 deadline.

Another representative, Piyush Kumar Singh, accused the state government of failing to take the students’ grievances seriously.

Meanwhile, the protesters also expressed their disappointment with Congress leadership while referring to an earlier assurance they said Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had given them. According to the students, the Congress leader had indicated that the party would withdraw support from the Jharkhand government coalition if Soren failed to provide a satisfactory response to their concerns by August 15.

With that deadline having passed without the action they expected, the protesters alleged that the government had failed to honour its commitments and continued to disregard their demands.