Earlier in the day, Jansuraj Party chief Prashant Kishor joined the agitating students at the protesting site to express solidarity with them. The students are demanding the cancellation and re-examination of the 70th Integrated Combined Competitive (Preliminary) Examination (CCE), 2024.
As a protest against the alleged paper leak in the Bihar Public Service Commission (BPSC) examination intensifies in Patna, the students on Sunday started the march towards Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s residence. While the security has been beefed up to deal with any anarchic situation, the students have been resolute to encircle the CM house. This led to minor scuffles between students and police. Meanwhile, Prashant Kishor appealed to protestors to halt the agitation as the Bihar government Secretary agreed to meet a five-member delegation of the students.
However, the police later used water cannons to disperse the protestors as they refused to leave the protest site despite negotiations. Earlier. during the march towards CM House, the students broke the barricading at JP Golambar near Gandhi Maidan. However, the protesting students were stopped some 100 metres ahead at the next security barricading.The rally was called by Prashant Kishore, who urged students to assemble near Mahatma Gandhi’s statue at Gandhi Maidan in Patna for a ‘Chatra Sansad’ (students’ congregation). However, the authorities denied permission for the event. The police asked the students to vacate Gandhi Maidan, but the students started sloganeering. A large group of Jansuraj Party workers reached Gandhi Maidan with posters and banners. The protesters broke through police barricades and moved closer to the Gandhi statue.
Will start protest again if unsatisfied with negotiations The candidates have been protesting for more than a week seeking the cancellation and re-examination of the 70th Integrated Combined Competitive (Preliminary) Examination (CCE), 2024 conducted by the BPSC over allegations of question paper leak. The protesters have been staging a dharna at Gardani Bagh for several days. They contend that cancellation should be ordered across the board since re-examination for just one centre would go against the principle of a “level playing field”.