The Jharkhand government is holding fresh discussions with student aspirants protesting alleged recruitment exam irregularities, even as the health of key protest leader Devendra Nath Mahto has significantly deteriorated after being on an indefinite hunger strike for about a week.
As the agitation over alleged irregularities in Jharkhand recruitment examinations entered its 14th day, talks between the state government and student protesters on Friday failed to break the deadlock, with students deciding to continue their protest and hunger strike until their demands, including cancellation of the 14th JPSC examination, are met.
The Indian government has confirmed its readiness for a Lok Sabha debate on the ongoing student protests and police action, with Union Home Minister Amit Shah set to address the concerns, particularly those related to the NEET paper leak issue.
Former Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC) chairperson L Khiangte has been arrested by the state CID in connection with alleged irregularities in recruitment examinations. His arrest follows the resignation of all three JPSC members amidst widespread protests over the exam irregularities. Khiangte, an ex-IAS officer, had resigned from his post in July.
The All India Students' Association (AISA) has announced its support for the Cockroach Janta Party's (CJP) proposed September 5 protest march in Delhi. The demonstration aims to demand the withdrawal of FIRs against students and an inquiry into alleged pellet and bullet firing during previous agitations, alongside addressing unresolved issues related to the NEET exam.
Students and job aspirants in Jharkhand, protesting alleged irregularities in recruitment exams, have formed an 11-member delegation to engage in talks with the state government. This decision follows Chief Minister Hemant Soren's offer for dialogue to resolve the ongoing impasse, which includes demands for exam cancellation, an independent probe, and comprehensive reforms in the JPSC and JSSC.
Abhijeet Dipke, founder of the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), emphasised the importance of young or Gen Z voices leading dialogues with youth, ahead of RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat's interaction with students in Mumbai. Dipke highlighted that youth protests, including those against the NEET paper leak, have compelled leaders to engage with Gen Z. He also expressed solidarity with students protesting alleged paper leaks in Jharkhand, criticising the government's handling of the issue.
Rajya Sabha Chairman C P Radhakrishnan stated he is constantly under pressure from Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge, particularly after disallowing Kharge's attempt to raise the alleged theft of Ayodhya Ram Temple donations. Radhakrishnan also mentioned disallowing Treasury benches from raising the "Jharkhand issue," asserting that state subjects cannot be debated in the House. The session saw continuous disruptions, leading to an adjournment.
Abhijeet Dipke, convener of the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), has urged the BJP to align with RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat's stance on Gen Z protests, particularly regarding NEET examination irregularities, and to refrain from labelling protesting youth as 'anti-national'.
Actor-politician Kangana Ranaut has made a significant U-turn, praising Gen Z as India's biggest strength and ambassadors of culture, days after controversially labelling them 'generation gutter.' Her new stance aligns with RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat's recent comments advocating for hearing out young protesters.
The BJP is significantly increasing its digital engagement with young people on Instagram, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and several Union ministers, in response to the NEET-UG paper leak controversy and subsequent student protests. This strategic shift aims to counter the narrative and communicate government actions on examination reforms.
The BJP has accused the Congress and its INDIA bloc allies of deliberately disrupting the Monsoon Session of Parliament, alleging that their conduct has prevented discussions on key Bills and exposed the Opposition's 'double standards' on issues such as paper leaks and student protests.
Education sector experts agree that using the "best technology" was essential to ensure students did not have to sit for an examination all over again because of a question paper leak.
Radical Islamist networks are deliberately targeting Muslim youths embedded within the country's professional and academic ecosystems, leveraging their skills, mobility, and digital reach to quietly strengthen operational capabilities. This trend highlights a dangerous evolution in terror recruitment -- one that exploits ideological faultlines, online echo chambers and transnational radical Islamist influences to attract individuals who outwardly embody India's modern and aspirational narrative, points out Dr Kanchan Lakshman.
The decision that came soon after the Bharatiya Janata Party's poll victory in four of the five states was taken after a high-level committee submitted its report to the Railway Board.
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Road and rail traffic was partially affected in some regions on Monday during a 'Bharat bandh' called against the Agnipath military recruitment scheme, while protests appeared to taper off in many states, with authorities stepping up security and imposing curbs after days of unrest.
Protestors continued to target railway properties in Bihar and West Bengal on Saturday to vent their ire against the Agnipath defence recruitment scheme disrupting train services in the eastern region for the fourth day in a row, while demonstrations were held on roads in Odisha and Jharkhand.
The Railways cancelled 234 trains while 340 trains have been affected so far due to protests against the Agnipath scheme for recruitment in the defence services, the Railways said on Friday.
"The schedule of recruitment process will be announced shortly. We call upon our youth to avail this opportunity for joining the Indian Army as Agniveers," Gen Pande said.
A man was shot dead in police firing in Telangana's Secunderabad, trains went up in flames, and public and private vehicles attacked, as railway stations and highways turned into battleground in many states on Friday amid burgeoning protests against Agnipath, the contentious defence recruitment scheme.
A petrol bomb was hurled at a school in Ranchi where a recruitment test for teachers was being held.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Saturday approved a proposal to reserve 10 per cent of the job vacancies in the defence ministry for 'Agniveers' who meet requisite eligibility criteria.
The women, after their 45-day induction training and combat-stress inoculation, will be deployed in the valley to tackle stone-pelters and protestors, including women.
There is disquiet and discomfort in the citizenry that can be touched and felt. No one is talking, but then, the Indian voter has not talked much -- with the conviction that all that goes up has to come down, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
He has been taken into preventive custody for violating section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code during the Ranchi bandh.
Days after senior West Bengal minister Partha Chatterjee was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in connection with the school recruitment scam, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday slammed the media for allegedly launching a "malicious campaign" against her party.
If the fear of ED could drive the powerful people of today to be honest or at least be minimally corrupt, will it not be a great thing for our nation?, asks Sudhir Bisht.
'The people of Uttar Pradesh have already made up their mind to puncture the Samajwadi Party's cycle, kick away the Bahujan Samaj Party's elephant, and remove shadows of the already-vanished hand of the Congress.'
None of them had anything to do with the violence at Bhima Koregaon, where they were not even present, points out Aakar Patel.
In heart-wrenching scenes reminiscent of the aftermath of the 2019 Pulwama terror attack in which 40 CRPF personnel were killed, coffins of soldiers arrived in several states for the last rites with full military honours.
'The people of India have not only challenged the ruling dispensation with the constitution, they have also opened the eyes of the leadership that sits in the Opposition.'
K Chandrasekhara Rao is using politics to highlight an administrative and judicial issue, says B Dasarath Reddy.
India's Muslims need to assert their educational and economic upliftment and political empowerment rather than be provoked by communal remarks, says Mohammad Sajjad, reflecting on the Malda riot.
Equations have changed in the new India. If the '60 and the '70s saw migration of people from South India to North India, it is the reverse right now. And without understanding this new dynamics, if the ruling party were to impose on the majority a language spoken by just 45 pc of the people, it is unlikely to be accepted without demur, says Shobha Warrier.
'For the last 10 years the Congress made the RSS an idea of intolerance, anti-minority, especially anti-Muslim, and an idea of fascism.' 'That has been demolished now by Pranab Mukherjee.'
'People are beaten at the slightest provocation, paraded completely naked and then tortured. Did you know the number of prison deaths is the highest in Maharashtra? The one year I was in jail, 98 prisoners died.' 'The judges did warn the jail authorities, but they didn't care. They even violated the high court's order regarding my treatment. One judge asked my lawyer: "Can I go and implement my orders there?"' Professor G N Saibaba, who is 90 per cent handicapped, speaks of his ordeal in a Nagpur jail after being arrested for protesting against the Centre's anti-Naxal and anti-Adivasi campaign.
