Ranchi Police has registered three FIRs against 14 named people and more than 200 unidentified persons following the clash between police and JPSC-JSSC protesters in Jharkhand’s capital on August 21.
Ranchi City SP Paras Rana said the cases were registered at Kotwali police station in connection with Friday’s violence. Among those named in the FIRs are Kunal Pratap Singh, Piyush Kumar and Ravindra Paswan, leaders of the JPSC-JSSC Reforms Manch, which has been leading the protest against alleged irregularities in recruitment examinations.
According to police, the cases relate to allegations of obstructing government work, violating administrative instructions and clashing with police. One FIR was registered by the police, while two others were based on complaints filed by individuals.
The action followed a tense situation on Friday when protesters allegedly attempted to burn effigies of Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. Officials said supporters of the ruling Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) also disrupted a statewide effigy-burning programme organised by students.
Clashes were reported in several district headquarters, including Ranchi, Hazaribag, Giridih and Garhwa. Police also resorted to lathi-charge in Hazaribag.
Kotwali police station officer-in-charge Sanoj Choudhary said the confrontation occurred after protesters allegedly failed to follow the route approved by the district administration. However, Reforms Manch leader Kunal Singh claimed that JMM workers were responsible for creating the violence.
The protest is linked to a wider dispute over recruitment examinations in Jharkhand. Students have been demanding action over alleged irregularities in examinations conducted by the Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC) and Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission (JSSC).
The developments came after the Jharkhand High Court intervened in several cases concerning recruitment and appointments. On Friday, the court stayed notifications cancelling appointments of Child Development Project Officers and candidates recruited through the JSSC-CGL examination.
A day earlier, the High Court had stayed notifications cancelling the 11th and 13th JPSC examinations and also stayed the cancellation of appointments of food safety officers.
The court’s intervention came shortly after the JMM-led government agreed to some of the demands raised during the students’ 26-day protest. However, the JPSC-JSSC Reforms Manch accused the government of putting up a weak defence before the court and described the proceedings as a “legal drama”.
With fresh FIRs now registered, the confrontation between the protesting students and the state authorities has entered a new phase, even as legal proceedings over the disputed recruitment examinations continue.
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