Jharkhand exam protests grow with assembly march

Indian students marched toward the Jharkhand state assembly in Ranchi on Aug. 10, escalating protests over alleged irregularities in government recruitment examinations.

At least six protesters are on hunger strike, including student leader Devendra Nath Mahto, 33, who has been fasting for more than a week. Mahto, quoted by Indian media, said protesters wanted the examination system to change and demanded an end to the use of a private company that conducts tests for the state civil service.

Large crowds of students chanted slogans as they moved toward the assembly. Hundreds of police guarded the building behind barbed-wire barricades after repeated talks between protesters and the state government failed to reach an agreement.

The protesters are demanding the cancellation of several examinations conducted by a private company for the state government, as well as a federal police investigation into their conduct.

Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren has sought to ease the protests by accepting some demands, while several members of the civil service body overseeing the examinations have stepped down. In a speech on Sunday, Soren said every problem could be resolved through dialogue.

The Ranchi protests began on July 29, days after youth-led protests in New Delhi over alleged failures in India’s examination system were followed by the resignation of then education minister Dharmendra Pradhan. The Jharkhand rallies are directed at the state government, which is in opposition to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party.