Daijiworld Media Network - Ranchi
Ranchi, Aug 10: The deadlock between the Jharkhand government and students protesting alleged irregularities in the Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC) and Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission (JSSC) examinations continued on Sunday as the sixth round of talks failed to resolve the dispute.
Student leaders said the agitation would continue and announced a peaceful march to the Jharkhand Assembly on Monday, August 10.
According to the students, the government has agreed to cancel the JPSC Preliminary Test (JPSC-PT), but no consensus was reached on their demand to cancel the Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission Combined Graduate Level (JSSC-CGL) examination.
The talks, held at the state guest house in Ranchi, remained positive but inconclusive. A prominent student group, however, described the government's move as "political manoeuvring".
Student leaders maintained that they would not compromise unless their demand for a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe was accepted.
After the meeting, Minister Sudivya Kumar Sonu said the government had accepted 98 per cent of the students' demands. However, student leaders remained firm on the cancellation of the JSSC-CGL examination.
"The state government does not have the authority to cancel the JSSC-CGL exam, as it was conducted following the directives from the High Court and the Supreme Court. In such a situation, the government cannot cancel the exam on its own," Sonu said.
He also clarified that the government could not cancel the appointments of candidates selected through the CGL examination.
The minister said that, if required, a probe committee headed by a retired judge could be constituted to investigate alleged irregularities in the CGL examination.
Sonu further said a fast-track court would be established to deal with cases related to examination irregularities and charge sheets would be filed within 90 days.
The state government would also recommend an Enforcement Directorate probe into alleged financial irregularities in JPSC examinations, he said.
The government plans to constitute a panel comprising experts from IITs, IIMs and XLRI to recommend reforms to the state's examination system. A separate panel headed by a retired High Court judge would examine alleged irregularities in the JSSC-CGL examination, Sonu said.
Student leader Ravindra Paswan, however, said the agitation would continue as the demands for cancellation of the CGL examination and a CBI probe had not been accepted.
He announced that students would take out a peaceful march to the Assembly on Monday.
"Our demand is that all examinations conducted by the TDPL agency should be cancelled and a CBI investigation should be ordered. Secondly, all examinations in which Abhay Tiwari was involved should be cancelled and a CBI investigation should be conducted," Paswan said.
He added that since all their demands, including a CBI inquiry into the JSSC-CGL examination, had not been fulfilled, the students would continue their agitation and gherao the Jharkhand Assembly on Monday as scheduled.
"Most of our demands have been met, including the demand for cancellation of the 14th JPSC exam. But we will not compromise till our demand for a CBI probe is fulfilled," Paswan said.
The Jharkhand government began the fresh round of talks on Sunday as the students entered the 16th day of their agitation. The latest discussions followed meetings between the government and different student groups on Friday night and throughout Saturday, which failed to break the deadlock.
The state government had held discussions with the JPSC-JSSC Reforms Manch, which has been spearheading the agitation, on Friday night.
On Saturday, it held four rounds of talks with different student groups, including the Congress' student wing NSUI, Jharkhand Chhatra Morcha and Adivasi Chhatra Sangh.
Two groups participated in Sunday's talks — one led by Devendranath Mahto, who has previously contested Lok Sabha elections, and the other representing the JPSC-JSSC Reforms Manch. Six student representatives took part in the discussions.
Meanwhile, amid the controversy over alleged irregularities in JPSC examinations, all three serving members of the commission — Dr Ajita Bhattacharya, Dr Anima Hansda and Dr Jamal Ahmed — have resigned from their posts.
Sources said the three members submitted their resignation letters to the Governor, who accepted them.
The resignations come amid increasing scrutiny of the JPSC over alleged irregularities in the conduct of competitive examinations and the appointment of agencies to handle the examination process.
The development assumes significance as the Jharkhand CID, which is investigating alleged irregularities in JPSC recruitment examinations, had recently summoned the three serving members for questioning.
According to sources, the three JPSC members were asked to appear before the investigating agency on August 10, 12 and 14, respectively.
The CID is reportedly seeking to ascertain the role of the commission members in various decisions related to the conduct of examinations, including the selection of agencies entrusted with examination-related work.