Campus Times | Lucknow 

Students protesting alleged irregularities in Jharkhands recruitment examinations have temporarily called off their 26-day agitation, giving the state government two months to address their demands and ensure a transparent investigation into the disputed examinations.

The decision was announced by the JPSC-JSSC Reforms Manch, which has been spearheading the agitation in Ranchi. A representative of the organisation said the protest had been suspended to give the government time to act on the issues raised by job aspirants.

The development comes a day after the Jharkhand government issued notifications cancelling 22 recruitment examinations and ordering investigations into 23 other exams conducted by the Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC) and an outsourced agency since 2014.

The students had been holding a sit-in in Ranchi over alleged irregularities in several recruitment tests, including the 14th JPSC Civil Services Examination and the JSSC Combined Graduate Level (JSSC-CGL) examination. They have been demanding an independent and comprehensive probe into the alleged lapses and stronger safeguards to prevent their recurrence.

Protesters End Hunger Strike

As part of the latest development, three protesters — Rupesh Kumar Pal, Savita Kumari and Rahul Kranti — ended their 15-day hunger strike on Wednesday, according to PTI. Student leader Devendra Nath Mahato had already withdrawn his hunger strike on Tuesday following a meeting with ministers and MLAs who visited him at Ranchis Sadar Hospital.

The students said they would continue to support measures aimed at cleaning up the recruitment process while closely monitoring the governments response during the two-month period.

Key Demands Before Government

The JPSC-JSSC Reforms Manch has also urged Chief Minister Hemant Soren to take strict action against those responsible for examination irregularities and put in place mechanisms to prevent similar incidents in the future.

Among the protesters other demands are the withdrawal of FIRs registered against participants of the August 10 march to the state Assembly and the reinstatement of whistle blower Santosh Kumar Mastana in the Finance Department.

With the protest now suspended, the government faces a two-month window to act on the students demands and demonstrate that the ongoing investigations will lead to concrete reforms in Jharkhands recruitment examination system.

The students have indicated that they will continue to cooperate with the reform process, while retaining the option of further action if their concerns are not adequately addressed within the stipulated period.