Jharkhand Police Clash With Students Over Exam Irregularities

Thousands of job aspirants clashed with police in Ranchi on August 10, 2026, during a march toward the state assembly. The protesters, led by the JPSC-JSSC Reform Manch, demanded the cancellation of the Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission Combined Graduate Level (JSSC-CGL) examination and a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into alleged paper leaks and financial irregularities. Police used water cannons, tear gas, and lathicharges to disperse the crowd after demonstrators breached multiple layers of barricades. The unrest resulted in several injuries, including to police personnel, and led to the hospitalization of student leader Devendra Nath Mahto after a nine-day hunger strike.

Prior to the clashes, the government of Jharkhand attempted to resolve the 17-day agitation by canceling the 14th Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC) preliminary exam and backlog recruitments. Minister Sudivya Kumar Sonu claimed the state met 98 percent of student demands, but protesters rejected the offer, arguing that the government refused to cancel the majority of contested exams and resisted a CBI probe. Amid the turmoil, three JPSC members resigned, and the CID arrested former JPSC Chairman L Khiangte. The Enforcement Directorate also launched a money laundering investigation into the irregularities.

The crisis sparked a political confrontation. The Bharatiya Janata Party condemned the police action as barbaric and called for a statewide bandh on August 11, which caused widespread closures in Ranchi. While Chief Minister Hemant Soren defended the police response and accused the opposition of hijacking the movement for political gain, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi condemned the use of force and urged the government to resolve the issues through dialogue.