The Opposition has announced a four-day statewide mobilisation after its 48-hour deadline to the government expired, keeping the controversy over cases against students at the centre of Jharkhand’s continuing recruitment-exam dispute.

Four Days, 24 Districts

Jharkhand BJP president Aditya Sahu has announced that party workers will stage demonstrations and gherao the offices of Deputy Commissioners and Superintendents of Police across all 24 districts from September 8 to 11. Six districts will be covered each day.

The schedule begins on September 8 in Ranchi, Dumka, Hazaribagh, Giridih, Jamshedpur and Garhwa; September 9 in Koderma, Sahibganj, Bokaro, Palamu, Simdega and Chaibasa; September 10 in Seraikela-Kharsawan, Pakur, Dhanbad, Gumla, Latehar and Chatra; and September 11 in Ramgarh, Deoghar, Lohardaga, Khunti, Godda and Jamtara.

What the BJP Is Seeking

The announcement follows a memorandum submitted by a BJP delegation led by Sahu and Leader of Opposition Babulal Marandi to Chief Secretary Avinash Kumar on September 2. The party demanded withdrawal of cases registered against students during protests over alleged irregularities in JPSC and JSSC examinations, besides seeking a CBI probe into recruitment examinations conducted over the past seven years.

Sahu alleged that around 1,000 students had faced cases and accused the government of using police action to suppress legitimate protest. He also alleged that students were subjected to baton charges, while those accused by the BJP of attacking protesters were not similarly proceeded against. These allegations have not been independently verified, and the government’s response to the latest charges was not immediately available.

The Next Political Test

The proposed gheraos mark a fresh escalation in the recruitment controversy. With the government yet to meet the BJP’s demands, the immediate test will be whether the planned district-level mobilisation remains focused on the students’ grievances or widens into a larger political confrontation over recruitment, policing and accountability.

Source: https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/jharkhand/jharkhand-bjp-to-gherao-police-commissioners-offices-from-september-8/article71428598.ece