Ranchi: BJP MLAs on Thursday staged a protest outside the state Assembly against the state government over alleged irregularities in the Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC), JSSC CGL, and various other competitive examinations.
Speaking to ANI outside the Assembly, BJP MLA Alok Chaurasia declared that the party stands firmly with the protesting students on the issue.
"The Bharatiya Janata Party stands firmly and vocally with the students regarding the functioning of Jharkhand government agencies such as JPSC, JSSC, and CJL, as well as the widespread corruption across the state, particularly the fraud committed against students..." Chaurasia told ANI.
Drawing a parallel with the NEET-UG paper leak protest, BJP MP Damodar Agarwal accused the opposition parties of not genuinely caring about students and targeting their issues in places where the BJP is in power.
"This is exactly the opposition's double standard. Students are the same in all different states. Students are protesting, but they don't care. Where the BJP government is in power, these people want to raise issue..." Agarwal told ANI.

Meanwhile, All Jharkhand Students Union (AJSU) MLA Nirmal Mahto demanded the imposition of President's rule in the state, asserting that there is a total loss of public faith in the system in Jharkhand.
Earlier in the day, agitating students announced a "Vidhan Sabha Gherao" on August 10 if their demands are not met.

Protester Radhe Kumar said the decision to gherao the Assembly was taken after the government initiated contact with the agitating students.
"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 told ANI.

He said the protesters were demanding the cancellation of the JPSC and JSSC CGL examinations and other recruitment tests conducted through TSR Data Processing Private Limited (TDPL).

"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.

This report was published from a syndicated wire feed. Apart from the headline, the EdexLive Desk has not edited the copy.