'Failure Of Governance': JLKM chief Jairam Mahato Slams Police Lathi Charge On JPSC-JSSC Aspirants, Seeks CBI & Judicial Probes

Ranchi: Jharkhand Loktantrik Krantikari Morcha (JLKM) national president and MLA Jairam Kumar Mahato on Tuesday condemned the police lathi charge  on students during to the state assembly and alleged that it demonstrated a “failure of governance,” as the action under the cover of darkness reminded him of the atrocities committed during the  British Raj.

JKLM actively participated in the march to the state assembly, taken out by JPSC-JSSC aspirants.      

Mahato wrote on “X”, “I strongly condemn the police lathi charge on students protesting outside the Jharkhand Assembly. Such action against students who are peacefully and democratically raising their voices is unacceptable under any circumstances.

He alleged that the government had sufficient time to hold talks with the students and find a solution but failed to understand the seriousness of the issue.

Following the lathi charge, he said, he went to Sadar Hospital and met the injured students to enquire about their condition. He later visited Jaipal Singh Munda Stadium, where the protesting students were assembled, and discussed their future course of action with them while encouraging them to continue their agitation.

Referring to the ongoing controversy over alleged irregularities in recruitment examinations conducted by the Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC), the JLKM chief said the arrest of the former JPSC chairman and the subsequent resignation of three members indicated that irregularities had taken place.

He also questioned how all 33 students from the same subject at a university could be selected as Child Development Project Officers (CDPOs), alleging irregularities in the recruitment process. These students were not from a respectable university. CDPOs are appointed through the JPSC.

He further claimed that Abhay Tiwari of TDPL had admitted that Rs 40-60 lakh had been collected and questioned why the government was reluctant to order a CBI probe into the matter.

“What is stopping the government from ordering a CBI investigation? This is beyond comprehension,” he said.

He reiterated his demand for a CBI probe into the alleged recruitment scam and called for the cancellation of the CGL examination as well as all examinations conducted by TDPL.

He also demanded a high-level judicial inquiry into the police lathi charge, headed by a retired High Court judge. “The struggle may be difficult, but the voice for one's rights cannot be suppressed. The struggle will continue,” he added.