Jharkhand students protest LIVE: Protestors reach State Assembly premises; police use tear gas, water cannons

On the ongoing students’ protests in Jharkhand, BJP national spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivediaccused the Congress and Rahul Gandhi of adopting a “double standard” on students’ issues.

“They are struggling in a restrained manner. They are struggling in a disciplined manner. There is no abusive language, there is no foul language being used there. Nor are they being provided high-quality food ordered from unknown sources from places such as Swiggy and Zomato. Nor is there a picnic-like atmosphere there,” he said.

The BJP leader stressed that the issue is not limited to alleged paper leaks but concerns jobs and alleged irregularities in recruitment.

He questioned Mr. Gandhi’s silence on the protests in Ranchi, contrasting it with his earlier interventions in student agitations in other parts of the country.

“Rahul Gandhi cannot hear the voice of the students of Ranchi. Those who used to roar and shout from Kota to Prayagraj are not even seen making a noise in Ranchi. This shows that their objective is not to speak for the interests of students but to fulfil their political interests,” Mr. Trivedi said. – PTI

Latest visuals from Ranchi showed police urging protesters to return home

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Amid the ongoing protests by JPSC and JSSC aspirants in Ranchi, Jharkhand Minister Deepika Pandey Singh stated that while the government respects the democratic right to protest, it must operate within the constitutional framework regarding the cancellation of examinations.

Addressing the situation, Minister Deepika Pandey Singh emphasised that the administration has been instructed to maintain law and order without the use of force.

“In a democracy, there is permission for protests; people are free to hold them. The administration is taking the necessary actions to maintain law and order. There will be no use of pellet guns, tear gas, or lathi-charge here,” she told reporters.

Responding to allegations of a communication gap between the State government and the protesting students, the Minister clarified that dialogue has been consistent over the past several days.

“It wasn’t a lack of communication; we held discussions for hours–talks have been ongoing for four days. We agreed to everything that was within the state government’s capacity to address,” she said.

However, she said that the primary demand of the protestors, the total cancellation of the CGL (Combined Graduate Level) exam–is complicated by legal parameters.

– ANI

Student leader Devendra Nath Mahato said on the Vidhan Sabha march, “…This agitation is not going to stop. This has become a mass movement…We will continue to march ahead.”

Protestors have now reached near the Vidhan Sabha premises after being stopped at one spot for over two hours. The Vidhan Sabha session was scheduled to end at 3 p.m.

– Aniket Singh Chauhan, Suruchi Kumari

On being asked about the use of tear gas shells and lathicharge on the protestors, City DSP Ajay Aryan told The Hindu, “No force was used but police had to push back to control the crowd. To disperse, since it is a huge crowd, police had to push back to ensure that no one is injured but we won’t call it lathicharge. It was reactionary.” 

He said that they had strict instructions to not use any force on the protestors. However, few protestors were injured including one who was hit on his head by one policeman’s lathi.

“Tear gas shells were also fired to disperse the crowd on the side so the impact is less. We were using all deterrents to avoid any mishap.”- Aniket Singh Chauhan, Suruchi Kumari

Jharkhand CID on Monday (August 10, 2026) arrested former JPSC chairperson L Khiangte in connection with alleged irregularities in the recruitment examinations, a top official of the State probe agency said.

Police fired six rounds of tear gas back to back. Protestors tried to break the human chain formed by police and push against them. Barricades had already been broken as student try to march towards the Assembly.- Aniket Singh Chauhan, Suruchi Kumari

Thousands of job aspirants, protesting exam irregularities, faced water cannons as they marched to the Jharkhand assembly on Monday (August 11, 2026), breaching barricades one after the other.

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Protesting job aspirants face water cannons as they march to Jharkhand Assembly

Job aspirants protest in Jharkhand, facing water cannons while demanding exam reforms and accountability for irregularities.

The protestors moving towards the Jharkhand Assembly building, bursts into reciting the national anthem and chants of Vande Matram.

– Suruchi Kumari

Protestors are continuing to move forward towards the Jharkhand Assembly building in Ranchi, even as police uses water cannons.

– Suruchi Kumari

A protestor sustains head injury during police lathicharge.- Suruchi Kumari

Protestors break third set of barricades despite police personnel pushing against barricades. Protestors refuse to step back even as police deploys mutiple rounds of water cannons. Police resort to lathicharge to disperse the protestors as they participate in the march to Assembly. – Aniket Singh Chauhan, Suruchi Kumari

Photo credit: Suruchi Kumari

Photo credit: Suruchi Kumari

One protestor mocked police water cannon deployment by using soap during the firing of water cannon.

Police fired water cannons at protesting students as they attempted to break through a second line of barricades on their way to the Jharkhand Assembly.- Aniket Singh Chauhan, Suruchi Kumari.

Photo credit: Aniket Singh Chauhan

As student leader Devendra Nath Mahto joins ‘Vidhan Sabha gherao’ march, he said, “…Despite being on a hunger strike, I have come here. They won’t be able to stop us. I reached here in an ambulance and I am going ahead on a stretcher. I have been on a hunger strike for the past 9 days and the Govt will have to accept our demands.”- ANI

Protestors have started moving forward again towards the State assembly after breaking barricades. The march was stopped by police near Jagannath Mandir.- Aniket Singh Chauhan, Suruchi Kumari

Photo credit: Suruchi Kumari.

JLKM leader Devendra Nath Mahto, who has been on a hunger strike for nine day, against exam irregularities, joined the march.

Photo credit: Suruchi Kumari

Jharkhand Police have deployed drones in the perimeter of Jagannath Mandir where thousands of protestors have been stopped right now. – Aniket Singh Chauhan, Suruchi Kumari

Photo credit: Suruchi Kumari

After waiting for 10 minutes, protestors have started jumping over the barricades. Ahead of the barricading, water cannon vehicles are parked. Volunteers are trying to control the crowd and asking them to maintain peace.- Aniket Singh Chauhan, Suruchi Kumari

Photo credit: Suruchi Kumari

After marching for half an hour, volunteers leading the protest have stopped by police near Jagannath Mandir, 3 km from the Vidhan Sabha complex. Volunteers are asking protestors to sit peacefully before proceeding further. Police personnel have so far cooperated with the march.- Aniket Singh Chauhan, Suruchi Kumari

Photo credit: Suruchi Kumari

Thousands of student protestors participate in ‘Vidhan Sabha Gherao’ march, as part of the protest against JPSC-JSSC irregularities.- ANI

Jharkhand Loktantrik Krantikari Morcha leader Devendra Nath Mahto, who has been on a hunger strike for nine days in protest against exam irregularities, joined the march in an ambulance, despite losing 10.5 kg. He was seen carrying a portrait of former Chief Minister Shibu Soren.- PTI

A student participating in Vidhan Sabha gherao march, said, “We have been stopped here but we will head towards the Vidhan Sabha peacefully. Until our demands are met, we will not stop. We demand CBI investigation…”- ANI

The Enforcement Directorate has launched an investigation into alleged irregularities in the conduct of multiple recruitment examinations in Jharkhand particularly the JSSC-CGL examination, officials said on Monday (August 10, 2026).

They said the central agency has taken cognisance of a state police CID FIR and some other complaints to initiate a probe under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

Students have been agitating in the State for 16 days demanding a CBI probe into alleged irregularities in recruitment examinations, particularly the JSSC-CGL (Jharkhand General Graduate Level Combined Competitive Examination).- PTI

Protestors are peacefully marching towards the State assembly with volunteers forming human chain ahead of them. Jharkhand Police’s water canon vehicle and riot control vehicle are present at the site.- Aniket Singh Chauhan, Suruchi Kumari

Photo credit: Suruchi Kumari

Police detain BJP leaders, including Aditya Sahu and Babulal Marandi, protesting outside CM Hemant Soren’s residence over exam irregularities.

BJP’s Jharkhand unit spokesperson Pratul Shahdeo said he, several other leaders are under house arrest since 7 a.m.- PTI

Photo credit: Suruchi Kumari

JAP, SAT and Jharkhand police personnel deployed at 500 meters from the Vidhan Sabha.

Protestors started moving forward after stepping over barricades. – Aniket Singh Chauhan, Suruchi Kumari

Hundreds of people who started marching towards the new Vidhan Sabha complex, have been stopped at the Old Vidhan Sabha Chowk. Jharkhand Armed Police (JAP) has been deployed.- Aniket Singh Chauhan, Suruchi Kumari

Student leader Ravindra Paswan said ahead of the march to assembly on Monday (August 10), “All of us are gathering at the Old Vidhan Sabha. We will begin our march from there in a very peaceful and constitutional manner. I would like to appeal to all the students to do this in a very peaceful and constitutional manner. I also appeal to the common public of Jharkhand to extend us their moral support. I also appeal to the CM to meet our demands, all our demands are genuine.”- ANI

The march to the State Assembly is yet to begin but people have started to gather outside the main gate of Old Vidhan Sabha.

Jharkhand police personnel are deployed along the Dhurva road leading to the old Vidhan Sabha from where the ‘Vidhan Sabha Gherao’ march is set to begin towards the the new Vidhan Sabha. 

Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) is in effect within a 750-metre radius of the State Assembly as per the Monsoon Session schedule from August 6 to August 12. It bars the assembly of five or more persons, processions, rallies, demonstrations and public meetings in the notified area.- Aniket Singh Chauhan, Suruchi Kumari

For many, JPSC and JSSC represent perhaps the clearest route to secure employment in a State where the private sector offers limited opportunities, particularly for young people from rural and Adivasi communities.

The choice, as several aspirants describe it, is stark: continue tilling the land that often provides enough to sustain a family but little surplus or spend years studying for a competitive examination that can potentially change the family’s economic circumstances. 

Read the full article here,

Student protestor Devendra Nath Mahato, who is on hunger strike, said ahead of the march, “Today is a day of revolution and change for us. For those who have been on hunger strike for the past few days, today is a decisive day in this struggle.”- PTI

Student protestor Savita Kumari said, “We had planned not to march towards the Assembly if the government fulfills our demands. But the government has not fulfilled even five per cent of our demands. So, all our brothers and sisters are marching towards the Assembly today to gherao it… We are protesting here and are on hunger strike.”- PTI

The Jharkhand government on Sunday (August 9, 2026) agreed to cancel the 14th Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC) preliminary examination and the JPSC backlog examinations held in 2023 and 2025 following six hours of discussions with protesting student groups.

However, the students remained firm on their demand for a CBI probe into the irregularities in the JSSC-CGL examination and said the agitation would continue. The announcement came even as all three JPSC members resigned and Chief Minister Hemant Soren assured protestors that “justice will be delivered with full transparency”.

Jharkhand Loktantrik Krantikari Morcha (JLKM) and JPSC-JSSC Reforms Manch, said they want cancellation of JSSC-CGL and all exams connected to the TSR Data Processing Private Limited Agency, a blacklisted entity.

Read more here,

The Jharkhand Police has imposed prohibitory orders around the assembly premises and made elaborate security arrangements across the city in view of ‘Vidhan Sabha March’ called by students who have been protesting for more than two weeks against alleged irregularities in recruitment exams in the State.

“In view of the possibility of unrest during the students’ proposed march to the State assembly, the police administration has been put on alert,” ADG (Headquarters) Manoj Kaushik said.

He urged the students, who will participate in the march to protest in a “peaceful and disciplined” manner as they have shown their discipline in the ongoing protest here for over two weeks, he said.

Protestors alleged that hundreds of students coming to the state capital from different parts of Jharkhand were being stopped by the police forcefully.- PTI

​​Read more here,​​

Student leader Ravindra Paswan said ahead of the march to Assembly, “A march to the Vidhan Sabha and a gherao will be conducted in a peaceful and constitutional manner. Students will start gathering there at 9:00 a.m.. The march will commence between 10:30 and 11:00 a.m., entirely peacefully and constitutionally. I urge all students and the general public to maintain peace and adhere to constitutional norms. Since we students are leading this movement, we must demonstrate that we are disciplined and educated. Students from every district of Jharkhand are arriving for today’s protest; there will be a massive turnout.”- ANI ​

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Protesting students leave from Jaipal Singh Munda Stadium for the old Jharkhand Legislative Assembly building, ahead of their call for Vidhan Sabha march to the new Assembly on Monday (August 10, 2026).- ANI