The students' protest in Ranchi demanding a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into alleged irregularities in the Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC) and Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission (JSSC) examinations entered its 11th day on Tuesday, with demonstrators intensifying their agitation over the alleged paper leak and recruitment scam.
The protesting students, who held a flash march on Monday evening, have announced a march to the Jharkhand Assembly on August 7 in support of their demands for a CBI inquiry and sweeping reforms in the state's recruitment process.
The protest has gathered political attention, with BJP MP Nishikant Dubey demanding a CBI probe and alleging corruption and nepotism in the recruitment commissions. Meanwhile, Chief Minister Hemant Soren has directed the formation of a high-level committee headed by Higher and Technical Education Minister Sudivya Kumar to interact with the students and submit its report within one to three months.
“Vande Mataram” chants at the JPSC protests in Jharkhand.
— BALA (@erbmjha) August 2, 2026
No violence. No vandalism. No abuses. Just students peacefully protesting over their grievances.
Yet, don’t expect the usual outrage. The selective silence is telling, perhaps because this is happening in a non-BJP-ruled… pic.twitter.com/X6rUTY0Uzj
The protests come as the Jharkhand Crime Investigation Department (CID) intensified its investigation into the alleged JPSC paper leak. In a statement, the CID said that Abhay Kumar Tiwari, a Jharkhand government employee identified as one of the alleged masterminds of the paper leak, had an extensive record of clearing several state and central competitive examinations.
Media? Silent. ?
— Megh Updates ?™ (@MeghUpdates) August 1, 2026
CJP? Silent. ?
Opposition? Silent. ?
Thousands of students in Jharkhand are protesting on the streets against JPSC/JSSC exam irregularities, yet NO mainstream coverage.
Why the radio silence? Because it’s an INDI alliance-ruled state? pic.twitter.com/YkZLMuQuWk
According to the CID, Tiwari qualified multiple recruitment examinations, including the 2013 Navy SSR examination, the 2014 Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) assistant examination, the 2014 Northern Coalfields Limited (NCL) examination, the IRB Constable examination, the 2018 CRPF Head Constable examination (written and typing), the 2018 Jharkhand Police Sub-Inspector examination, JSSC PGT and CGL examinations, and several JPSC examinations, including those for Assistant Conservator of Forest (ACF), Forest Range Officer (FRO), Food Safety Officer (FSO), and the 11th and 13th Jharkhand Combined Civil Services preliminary examinations.
Tiwari is among the 11 accused arrested so far in the case. At the time of his arrest, he was serving as a Block Supply Officer (BSO) in Godda district. The CID alleged that he was the marketing manager and authorised representative of TSR Data Processing Private Limited (TDPL), the firm entrusted with conducting the 14th JPSC examination held in April this year.
According to the FIR, Tiwari allegedly headed an organised crime syndicate that compromised the examination process. The case has been registered under multiple provisions of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS), 2023, including criminal breach of trust, cheating, forgery of valuable security, forgery for cheating, using forged documents as genuine and criminal conspiracy.
The FIR further alleges that the syndicate charged candidates Rs 5 lakh to clear the preliminary examination, Rs 10 lakh in advance for the mains examination and Rs 25 lakh for final selection. Investigators have also alleged that Tiwari amassed nearly Rs 25 crore through illegal activities linked to the paper leak and possessed assets disproportionate to his known sources of income.
As part of the ongoing investigation, the CID on Monday conducted searches at 18 locations across Ranchi, Palamu, Hazaribagh, Bokaro and Dhanbad as it widened its probe into the alleged examination scam.
