What is the story about?
While the country is yet to get over the protests in Delhi and Jharkhand over alleged irregularities in recruitment examinations, another student agitation intensified in Bihar. On Tuesday (August 25), hundreds of Bihar Public Service Commission (BPSC) aspirants broke through police barricades in Patna while marching towards Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary’s residence, leading to clashes with police.
The students were demanding the cancellation of the 70th BPSC examination over alleged irregularities. Their wider concerns include recruitment exam delays, paper leaks, changes in examination patterns and what they describe as a lack of transparency in the recruitment process.
The BPSC aspirants, along with other students, began their pre-announced march from Gandhi Maidan towards Raj Bhavan. The protesters reached the Dak Bungalow crossing, where police had put up barricades to stop them from moving towards the restricted area.
Several students broke through the barricades, leading to a confrontation with the police. Police used water cannons to disperse the protesters, while several agitators were detained. Police said some protesters also threw stones.
Heavy police deployment was seen at major intersections across Patna, with additional forces, including CRPF and RAF personnel, deployed at the Dak Bungalow crossing.
The students have been protesting in Patna’s Gardanibagh area for weeks.
The immediate trigger for the latest agitation is the delay in the advertisement for the fourth phase of the Bihar Teacher Recruitment Examination (TRE-4).
Candidates are demanding the official BPSC notification for more than 32,000 teacher posts without further delay. They are also opposing any potential change to the examination format, including the introduction of a two-stage Prelims-Mains system, which they fear could delay recruitment further.
The protesters are also demanding a single-tier examination for TRE-4, transparency in recruitment, examinations by the Bihar Staff Selection Commission (BSSC) and fair opportunities for Hindi-medium candidates.
Candidates preparing for the 70th BPSC civil services examination and BSSC exams have raised concerns over inconsistencies in marking systems, alleged paper leaks and frequent changes to examination patterns.
Research scholars have also raised concerns over new assistant professor recruitment rules and what they describe as unequal weightage for English-medium candidates compared with Hindi-medium aspirants.
Citing alleged irregularities in the 70th BPSC examination, the protesters demanded that it be cancelled.
DSP Kamakhya Narayan Singh said several demands of the students had been accepted and expressed hope that this would reduce the scale of the protest.
“We have put up barricades, and senior officers have also arrived here. A large number of personnel have been deployed, and talks with the students are also underway. The talks are positive. I hope many students have understood that several of their demands have been accepted, so the scale of the protest should be much smaller,” Singh told ANI.
He also said police would stop the protesters if they attempted to move ahead.
Congress leader Sushil Kumar said the protesters were seeking changes to TRE 4.0 and action on issues concerning the BPSC, BSSC and sub-inspector recruitment.
“There are numerous other issues as well, regarding the BPSC, BSSC, Sub-Inspector recruitment. The government has offered no assurances on any of these points. We have urged the chief minister to hold a dialogue; he should invite our delegation for talks. We have been on a hunger strike for nine days, yet no one is willing to listen to us. Just imagine, had the government engaged in dialogue, this situation would not have arisen,” Kumar told
ANI.
He also demanded a single-stage TRE 4.0 examination and the removal of negative marking.
As the protests intensified, Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary announced the launch of monthly ‘Vidyarthi Sahyog Shivir’, or student support camps, to address students’ grievances.
“The Bihar government is launching Vidyarthi Sahyog Shivir starting today to ensure prompt resolution of students' grievances. These camps will be organised at educational institutions on the fourth Tuesday of every month,” Choudhary said in a social media post.
The camps will allow students to raise their grievances directly with government officials. Choudhary also said students would be able to register complaints online and track their status through a portal and Helpline 1100.
The protest has received support from Bihar Leader of Opposition Tejashwi Yadav and his Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD).
Yadav wrote to Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary, urging the government to engage with the protesting BPSC candidates and resolve the issue.
Fourteen student and youth organisations have also backed the agitation, including the Revolutionary Youth Association, AISF and Chhatra Yuva Sangharsh Morcha.
The protest has also triggered a political row over remarks made by BPSC Examination Controller Rajesh Kumar.
While responding to allegations of irregularities and paper leaks, Kumar said: “Haathi chale bazaar, kutta bhaunke hazaar”, meaning, “An elephant walks through the market while a thousand dogs bark.”
Tejashwi Yadav criticised the remark and claimed that the examination controller’s language reflected that of the chief minister.
With inputs from agencies
The students were demanding the cancellation of the 70th BPSC examination over alleged irregularities. Their wider concerns include recruitment exam delays, paper leaks, changes in examination patterns and what they describe as a lack of transparency in the recruitment process.
What happened in Patna?
The BPSC aspirants, along with other students, began their pre-announced march from Gandhi Maidan towards Raj Bhavan. The protesters reached the Dak Bungalow crossing, where police had put up barricades to stop them from moving towards the restricted area.
Several students broke through the barricades, leading to a confrontation with the police. Police used water cannons to disperse the protesters, while several agitators were detained. Police said some protesters also threw stones.
Several students broke through the barricades, leading to a confrontation with police. PTI
Heavy police deployment was seen at major intersections across Patna, with additional forces, including CRPF and RAF personnel, deployed at the Dak Bungalow crossing.
The students have been protesting in Patna’s Gardanibagh area for weeks.
Why are the students protesting?
The immediate trigger for the latest agitation is the delay in the advertisement for the fourth phase of the Bihar Teacher Recruitment Examination (TRE-4).
Candidates are demanding the official BPSC notification for more than 32,000 teacher posts without further delay. They are also opposing any potential change to the examination format, including the introduction of a two-stage Prelims-Mains system, which they fear could delay recruitment further.
The protesters are also demanding a single-tier examination for TRE-4, transparency in recruitment, examinations by the Bihar Staff Selection Commission (BSSC) and fair opportunities for Hindi-medium candidates.
The protesters are also demanding a single-tier examination for TRE-4. PTI
Candidates preparing for the 70th BPSC civil services examination and BSSC exams have raised concerns over inconsistencies in marking systems, alleged paper leaks and frequent changes to examination patterns.
Research scholars have also raised concerns over new assistant professor recruitment rules and what they describe as unequal weightage for English-medium candidates compared with Hindi-medium aspirants.
Citing alleged irregularities in the 70th BPSC examination, the protesters demanded that it be cancelled.
What does the police say?
DSP Kamakhya Narayan Singh said several demands of the students had been accepted and expressed hope that this would reduce the scale of the protest.
“We have put up barricades, and senior officers have also arrived here. A large number of personnel have been deployed, and talks with the students are also underway. The talks are positive. I hope many students have understood that several of their demands have been accepted, so the scale of the protest should be much smaller,” Singh told ANI.
He also said police would stop the protesters if they attempted to move ahead.
What are the students demanding?
Congress leader Sushil Kumar said the protesters were seeking changes to TRE 4.0 and action on issues concerning the BPSC, BSSC and sub-inspector recruitment.
“There are numerous other issues as well, regarding the BPSC, BSSC, Sub-Inspector recruitment. The government has offered no assurances on any of these points. We have urged the chief minister to hold a dialogue; he should invite our delegation for talks. We have been on a hunger strike for nine days, yet no one is willing to listen to us. Just imagine, had the government engaged in dialogue, this situation would not have arisen,” Kumar told
He also demanded a single-stage TRE 4.0 examination and the removal of negative marking.
What has the Bihar government said?
As the protests intensified, Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary announced the launch of monthly ‘Vidyarthi Sahyog Shivir’, or student support camps, to address students’ grievances.
“The Bihar government is launching Vidyarthi Sahyog Shivir starting today to ensure prompt resolution of students' grievances. These camps will be organised at educational institutions on the fourth Tuesday of every month,” Choudhary said in a social media post.
The camps will allow students to raise their grievances directly with government officials. Choudhary also said students would be able to register complaints online and track their status through a portal and Helpline 1100.
What is the opposition's stance on the agitation?
The protest has received support from Bihar Leader of Opposition Tejashwi Yadav and his Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD).
Yadav wrote to Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary, urging the government to engage with the protesting BPSC candidates and resolve the issue.
Fourteen student and youth organisations have also backed the agitation, including the Revolutionary Youth Association, AISF and Chhatra Yuva Sangharsh Morcha.
The protest has also triggered a political row over remarks made by BPSC Examination Controller Rajesh Kumar.
While responding to allegations of irregularities and paper leaks, Kumar said: “Haathi chale bazaar, kutta bhaunke hazaar”, meaning, “An elephant walks through the market while a thousand dogs bark.”
Tejashwi Yadav criticised the remark and claimed that the examination controller’s language reflected that of the chief minister.
With inputs from agencies
