Thousands of students marched on the Jharkhand state assembly in Ranchi on Monday, breaking through police barricades as their agitation over alleged recruitment exam irregularities entered its 17th day.
The JPSC-JSSC Reforms Manch intensified its demonstration after a third round of talks with the state government failed to yield a resolution on Sunday. Authorities imposed prohibitory orders within 750 metres of the assembly complex as protesters demanded a Central Bureau of Investigation inquiry into leaked answer sheets from an April civil service exam. Several opposition BJP leaders were detained while demonstrating outside Chief Minister Hemant Soren's residence. The Enforcement Directorate has opened a money-laundering probe linked to the alleged fraud, and all three members of the Jharkhand Public Service Commission have resigned.
The state government says it has accepted most demands and scrapped three examinations, but protesters insist that 10 of the 13 disputed exams remain unresolved and six demonstrators continue an indefinite hunger strike.