Jharkhand Cancels JSSC-CGL, TDPL Exams as Students End Hunger Strike; CBI Probe Demand Remains

Four students, including student leader Devendra Nath Mahto, ended their hunger strike early Tuesday after the Jharkhand government announced the cancellation of examinations conducted by the Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission (JSSC) and TDPL. However, the students’ broader agitation is set to continue, with a CBI investigation into alleged recruitment exam irregularities still remaining a key demand.

The four protesters — Devendra Nath Mahto, Umm-e-Habiba, Prem Nayak and Kush Mahto — ended their fast at around 1.15 a.m. at Ranchi Sadar Hospital. Jharkhand ministers Deepika Pandey Singh and Irfan Ansari offered them juice, formally bringing the 16-day hunger strike to an end.

Mahto said the decision followed discussions involving Health Minister Irfan Ansari, Minister Deepika Pandey Singh and JLKM leader and MLA Jairam Kumar Mahato.

“Today, on the 16th day of our hunger strike, we ended our fast in a dignified manner,” Mahto said, adding that the protesters believed the demands for which they had been demonstrating peacefully had been addressed.

Jairam Kumar Mahato welcomed the government’s decision and described it as historic. He pointed out that the CGL recruitment process had already progressed to the joining stage, yet the government chose to cancel the examination after taking the students’ concerns into consideration.

The decision to cancel the JSSC-CGL and TDPL examinations was taken at a special Cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Hemant Soren on Monday.

The announcement brought an immediate sense of relief among the students who had been protesting at Jaipal Singh Munda Stadium. Despite heavy rain, protesters celebrated by distributing sweets, embracing one another, raising slogans and using colours and fireworks. They described the cancellation of the JSSC-CGL examination as a major victory after 24 days of agitation.

However, the celebrations did not mark the complete end of the movement.

The JPSC-JSSC Reform Forum has made it clear that its agitation will continue until the government takes a decision on its demand for a CBI probe into alleged irregularities in recruitment examinations.

Forum spokesperson Ravindra Paswan said the government had accepted one of the movement’s most important demands by cancelling the examinations, but the issue of an independent investigation remained unresolved.

Student leader Piyush Kumar described the government’s decision as the “first major victory” but said several issues still needed to be addressed, including concerns surrounding the 11th to 13th JPSC Civil Services Examination. The protesters are expected to examine the government's formal notification and other details before deciding their next course of action.

Chief Minister Hemant Soren had earlier said investigations by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) and CID into the JSSC-CGL matter had uncovered several significant findings, including indications of alleged collusion among different agencies.

The state government has also decided to conduct a comprehensive inquiry into recruitment examinations conducted by the JPSC and JSSC since 2014. Alongside this, a committee headed by IAS officer Amitabh Kaushal has been formed to recommend reforms aimed at making the recruitment process more transparent and reducing the possibility of irregularities in future examinations.

The latest decisions have provided a major breakthrough in the prolonged student agitation, but the demand for a CBI probe means the dispute is not yet fully settled. The government's implementation of the announced measures and its response to the pending investigation demand will determine whether the protests can finally be brought to an end.