Kejriwal Backs Jharkhand Students After Birthday Wish to Soren

Aam Aadmi Party national convenor Arvind Kejriwal on August 11 backed the Jharkhand student protest over JPSC and JSSC exam irregularities, urging the state government to resolve the issues at once and calling violence against students simply unacceptable.

The statement landed one day after he publicly wished Chief Minister Hemant Soren a happy birthday. Students had already spent more than two weeks at Ranchi’s Jaipal Singh Munda Stadium and faced water cannons, tear gas and lathis the previous day while trying to reach the Assembly.

Police Force Meets the Assembly March

On August 10 thousands of job aspirants breached multiple barricades during a planned gherao of the Jharkhand Assembly. They climbed fences near Jagannath Mandir roughly three kilometres from the complex, waved the national flag and pushed forward under heavy security and drone watch.

Police responded with water cannons, tear-gas shells and baton charges. Ranchi city police chief Paras Rana told ANI the force used mild aggression for a short time because the marchers were students and appealed for peace. Officials said several agitators and four policemen were injured. The Assembly adjourned for the afternoon.

• Start of sit-in: July 25 at Jaipal Singh Munda Stadium under JPSC-JSSC Reforms Manch
• Hunger strike: multiple leaders including Devendra Nath Mahto, later moved by ambulance
• Injuries Aug 10: several students plus four police
• Arrest same day: former JPSC chairman L. Khiangte by state CID

Protesters later sat near the final barricade. Health Minister Irfan Ansari visited hospitalised students the next day.

Five Core Demands Still Divide the Sides

Talks have run through at least six rounds. The government says it has accepted around 98 percent of the points. Students reject that figure and refuse to end the agitation.

Additional points raised by groups such as NSUI include a Jharkhand Testing Agency modelled on the National Testing Agency and inclusion of tribal languages. The immediate trigger remains the 14th JPSC Civil Services Preliminary results released in early July for only 103 posts.

One Viral Answer Sheet After Two Decades of Trouble

An OMR sheet that appeared to show a successful candidate answering only a fraction of questions correctly spread through aspirant WhatsApp and Telegram groups. Allegations of result manipulation followed quickly. The CID registered a case, searched JPSC headquarters, made arrests and prompted the chairman’s resignation on July 22.

1. 2003: History paper leak forced cancellation and re-exam the next year
2. 2012: CBI cases years later charged 50 people including former chairman Dilip Kumar Prasad over alleged favouritism linked to politicians and officials
3. July 2026: Viral OMR sparks current wave; L. Khiangte resigns July 22
4. August 9-10 2026: Three JPSC members resign; Khiangte arrested on alleged Rs 2 crore bribe deal with exam agency TDPL

Students say the pattern of delays, blacklisted agencies and paper insecurity stretches far beyond one exam. A government job remains one of the few reliable routes to economic security in the state. The same anger over recruitment integrity that produced large marches in Delhi weeks earlier has now taken root in Ranchi.

Birthday Greeting Meets Police Barricades

Kejriwal posted birthday greetings to Soren on August 10. The next morning he wrote that he would support the demands of the protesting students and that violence against them was simply unacceptable. The post drew thousands of likes and immediate political pushback.

I support the demands of the protesting students in Jharkhand and appeal to the govt to resolve their issues immediately. Violence against students is simply unacceptable

BJP leaders accused opposition figures of earlier silence while amplifying other paper-leak protests. Some voices on X noted the contrast with better-resourced Delhi demonstrations and claimed mainstream coverage of the Jharkhand sit-in had been thin. Congress leaders separately condemned the force used against peaceful protesters. BJP announced a state bandh in support of the students and demanded CBI involvement.

The timing underscores how quickly national parties can switch from courteous messages to public pressure when images of water cannons circulate.

Aspirants Carry the Real Cost

Most of those camping at the stadium are graduates who have spent years preparing for state services. Hunger strikers including Mahto saw their health decline; medical teams continue checks at the site. Families watch savings and opportunities erode while results hang under a cloud.

In a state where private-sector options remain limited, a compromised exam system locks out an entire cohort. The central Public Examinations Prevention of Unfair Means Bill already provides stronger penalties for leaks and organised cheating at the national level. State bodies such as JPSC and JSSC still operate under older practices that students say invite the same failures year after year.

Talks Continue While the Stadium Holds

An 11-member student delegation has met government negotiators. Concessions on some cancellations, an expert reform panel and probes have not produced a full settlement. Students insist on CBI oversight and the scrapping of the disputed JSSC-CGL before they leave the ground.

What We Know

• Protest ongoing since late July; hunger strikes active
• Ex-chairman arrested; multiple JPSC resignations
• Police used force on August 10 march; injuries on both sides
• Government claims most demands met; students dispute the count

What’s Unconfirmed

• Exact timeline for any fresh exams or full CBI entry
• Whether further resignations or agency changes will follow
• Long-term calendar enforcement details

The standoff sits inside a wider national conversation about recruitment integrity that already cost a Union education minister his post. In Jharkhand the immediate pressure remains on the Soren government to close the gap between announced acceptance and the demands that keep aspirants in the stadium. Kejriwal’s intervention adds another political voice without changing the ground facts that have accumulated over years of delayed exams and bribery allegations.

Students say they will stay until the system itself looks trustworthy again.