Nagpur: A large number of competitive examination aspirants and members of Vidarbha Spardha Pariksha Samanvay Samiti staged a protest at Samvidhan Square in the city on Wednesday, demanding high-level probe into alleged irregularities in Maharashtra Public Service Commission (MPSC) examinations.Members of the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), which shot into limelight during its protest against National Testing Agency (NTA) paper leaks at New Delhi’s Jantar Mantar resulting in the resignation of Union education minister, too extended support to the aspirants and joined the protest.The agitation saw protesters raise slogans against alleged paper leaks and what they described as repeated failures to protect credibility of recruitment examinations. The protest was led by Atul Khobragade, Abhilash Varade, Sanjay Randive, Shailesh Tumde, Khemraj Charmoshikar, Sanghpal Nikose, Pranay Satkar and Aniket Mate, among others.“This is not an issue restricted to one examination. Students spend years preparing for competitive examinations, but repeated allegations of irregularities have shaken their faith in the entire system. We want accountability and an impartial investigation,” Khobragade told TOI.The protesters said recent MPSC paper leak episode has severely dented the confidence of lakhs of aspirants preparing for competitive examinations.In a memorandum submitted to chief minister Devendra Fadnavis through Nagpur district collector, the committee demanded resignation of MPSC chairperson and a high-level inquiry into the commission’s functioning. It also sought that preliminary inquiry report submitted by Mumbai police’s crime branch be made public.The committee further demanded separate forensic audit of all MPSC examinations conducted during the tenure of deputy secretary Abhijit Lende, who was arrested in connection with the alleged question paper leak in the drug inspector recruitment examination, particularly during his posting in the commission’s confidential section.Additionally, it sought inquiry into complete service records of Lende and co-accused Gopal Marathe and Vishweshwar Nakate, including the basis of their promotions. The memorandum also called for scrutiny of the call detail records of candidates allegedly linked to the three officials.For aspirants who joined Wednesday’s protest, the issue goes beyond cancellation of an individual recruitment process. Karan Meshram, an MPSC aspirant, said repeated failures of the govt and paper leaks were affecting students’ confidence in the system. “We spend years preparing and making financial and personal sacrifices. All we expect is that the examination process should be fair and transparent,” he said.Another aspirant Aryan said genuine candidates ultimately bear the brunt whenever an examination runs into controversy. “Every cancellation or delay means more uncertainty for students, who have already spent years preparing. There has to be accountability so that same situation does not keep repeating,” he said.Vaidehi Bhilawe of Cockroach Janta Party, which extended support to the agitation, said several of its members joined the protest in solidarity with the aspirants. “The issue concerns alleged paper leaks and fairness of the examination process. We wanted to stand with the students and support their demand for a fair and transparent system,” she said.
