RANCHI: Around 110 workers of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) were detained on Tuesday while marching towards the Jharkhand Assembly to protest against police action on students agitating over alleged irregularities in recruitment examinations.The ABVP workers began their procession from the old Vidhan Sabha area.Police detained the protesters, including some women, as they proceeded towards the Assembly, news agency PTI reported.Clashes broke out between the protesters and police after ABVP workers allegedly prevented a bus carrying the detainees from leaving the spot.Several protesters sat in front of the vehicle, while some were seen climbing onto it.Two students, including a girl, fainted during the demonstration.Security personnel carried the girl to a nearby sheltered area, where fellow protesters provided her water.The ABVP alleged that more than 200 of its workers had been arrested during the march and accused the state government of trying to suppress the voice of students.However, Ranchi City SP Paras Rana said around 110 ABVP workers were detained, not arrested.“Around 110 ABVP workers were detained during their march to the Assembly. No one was arrested,” Rana said.ABVP worker Kumar Divyanshu alleged that the government was suppressing the voices of students and youths.Another protester, Tushar, who sat in front of the bus carrying the detainees, alleged that the workers were being detained without justification and demanded that they be allowed to continue their march peacefully, PTI reported.The protesters demanded a CBI probe into alleged irregularities in recruitment examinations and questioned the government over alleged police action against students.“We want to ask the government why the exam papers are being leaked? We demand a CBI probe. We study day and night so that we can get a job, but the papers keep getting leaked; we are beaten. What kind of justice is this?” said Priti Kumari, an ABVP worker from Chatra.The RSS-affiliated student organisation had called the march in protest against the alleged baton charge on students during Monday’s demonstration.Thousands of job aspirants had marched towards the Assembly on August 10, breached multiple barricades and clashed with police.Police used water cannons near Jagannathpur Temple and fired tear gas shells to disperse the protesters.While several protesters claimed they were injured, Ranchi Police said 14 personnel sustained injuries during the clashes.Students and job aspirants have been protesting since July 25, demanding transparency in recruitment examinations, reforms in the functioning of the Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC) and Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission (JSSC).The protesters are also demanding the cancellation of certain examinations and an independent probe by the CBI or a panel of retired high court judges from outside the state.(With agency inputs)
