Rahul Gandhi, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha and Congress leader, has welcomed the end of the hunger strike by students in Jharkhand and acknowledged the Hemant Soren-led government for choosing the path of dialogue and arriving at a solution. In a long post on X, the Congress leader said, "This is the right way - when students raise questions, they should get answers. We stand with every student in the country. And we will uproot and transform this recovery system - so that every student gets the full reward of their hard work and the right to fair competition."
"This system will change across the entire country - now a framework will be established that propels students forward, rather than holding them back," he added.
Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren on Monday announced the cancellation of the JSSC-CGL exam and all job tests conducted by outsourced agency TDPL since 2014. The decision was taken at a marathon meeting of the cabinet chaired by Soren. "The government has decided to cancel the Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission-Combined Graduate Level (JSSC-CGL) exam, which was one of the major demands of the protesting students. We have also decided to cancel all tests conducted by outsourced agency TDPL (TSR Data Processing Pvt Ltd) and the results published by it," Soren said after the cabinet meeting. He also announced the formation of an examination reforms committee headed by senior IAS officer Amitabh Kaushal.
Activist and student leader Devendra Nath Mahato, who had been at the forefront of the protest, welcomed the government's decision but made it clear that ending the hunger strike does not mean the broader movement for reforms is over. Following Soren's announcement, Mahato said the students would continue to cooperate with the investigation and efforts to address alleged corruption in the recruitment system. "We, the students, will continue to support this investigation and the effort to eradicate this corrupt system at its very roots, and we will persist in our struggle regarding the ongoing reform process... If our issues are resolved and our demands met, why would we need to hold further protests? We are currently awaiting an official notice," Mahato said.
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