Archive · 18 Aug 2026
Jharkhand student leader ends fast, announces second protest phase
A student leader in a state called Jharkhand was upset about job exams that he thought were not fair.
He believed exam papers were leaked and that cheating happened during recruitment tests.
To show how serious this was, he stopped eating food for 16 days.
This is called a hunger strike.
The state government listened and decided to cancel many of those exams.
It also cancelled all tests run by an outside company since 2014.
The student leader finally drank some juice and ended his hunger strike.
But he said the protest is not over.
He wants the government to promise that future exams will be fair and have no leaks.
He also wants a special group to watch over the exams and check everything carefully.
JLKM leader Devendra Mahto ended his 16-day hunger strike but insisted the protest was not over.
He announced a second phase of agitation demanding corruption-free recruitment in JPSC and JSSC examinations.
The Jharkhand government cancelled all recruitment tests conducted by outsourced agency TSR Data Processing Pvt Ltd (TDPL) since 2014, including the JSSC-CGL exam.
Chief Minister Hemant Soren announced an exam reforms committee headed by senior IAS officer Amitabh Kaushal.
Mahto is demanding a monitoring committee, a complete audit of the recruitment process, and a government guarantee against future paper leaks.
- Who
- Devendra Mahto, leader of the Jharkhand Loktantrik Krantikari Morcha (JLKM), with Chief Minister Hemant Soren and ministers Deepika Pandey and Irfan Ansari responding on the government side.
- What
- A 16-day hunger strike over allegedly compromised recruitment exams ended, with Mahto announcing a second phase of protest for corruption-free JPSC and JSSC recruitment.
- When
- The hunger strike was called off around Monday midnight; the second phase was announced on Tuesday.
- Where
- Ranchi, Jharkhand, where the fast was broken at Sadar Hospital.
- Why
- To press the state government to cancel allegedly irregular recruitment exams and guarantee no future paper leaks or irregularities.
Student Demonstrators
State Government
Guaranteeing future exam integrity
Student Demonstrators
Students demand a formal government guarantee against paper leaks, a monitoring committee for reforms, a complete step-by-step audit, and new legislation if necessary.
State Government
The government cancelled all TDPL-conducted tests, including the JSSC-CGL exam, and set up an exam reforms committee headed by senior IAS officer Amitabh Kaushal to strengthen recruitment tests.
Scope of the agitation
Student Demonstrators
Mahto said ending the hunger strike does not end the protest, and a second phase under the JPSC-JSSC Abhiyarthi Reform Manch will continue until guarantees are given.
State Government
Chief Minister Hemant Soren said cancelling the JSSC-CGL exam was one of the major demands of the protesting students, indicating that key demand had been met.
- Hunger strike duration
- 16 days
- Student leader
- Devendra Mahto (Devendra Nath Mahato)
- Organisation
- Jharkhand Loktantrik Krantikari Morcha (JLKM)
- Government action
- All recruitment tests by TSR Data Processing Pvt Ltd (TDPL) since 2014 cancelled, including JSSC-CGL
- Reforms committee head
- Senior IAS officer Amitabh Kaushal
- Committee announced by
- Chief Minister Hemant Soren
- Next protest platform
- JPSC-JSSC Abhiyarthi Reform Manch
- Location
- Ranchi, Jharkhand