RANCHI: The first round of talks between the Jharkhand government and protesting students over alleged irregularities in recruitment examinations ended on a positive note on Friday, but failed to break the deadlock, with the students vowing to continue their agitation until all their demands, including cancellation of the 14th Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC) examination, are met.
The 10-member delegation of the JPSC/JSSC Reforms Manch met a ministerial panel led by Higher and Technical Education Minister Sudivya Kumar in Ranchi on Friday evening.
While the government assured the students that their demands would be considered sympathetically, the protesters conveyed they would march to the Jharkhand Assembly on August 10 if no concrete action was taken by Sunday.
"The meeting with the Jharkhand government was held in a positive atmosphere. It assured us that our demands would be considered. However, we have decided to continue our protest till all our demands, including cancellation of the 14th JPSC examination, are met," student delegation leader Ravindra Paswan told reporters after the meeting.
The Minister said the government was sensitive to the concerns raised by the students and promised to examine their demands.
"We met the delegation of student protesters. The government is sensitive to their demands and is ready to consider them sympathetically. The outcome will be visible soon," he said.
Minister Dipika Pandey Singh said the students' demands had been conveyed to Chief Minister Hemant Soren.
"The chief minister is concerned about students and an outcome will come soon," she said.
Soren had earlier said his government was ready for dialogue with the protesting students.
"We are ready to hold talks. Every student in the state is welcome to place their grievances before us. We will move ahead with strong reforms in line with students' demands," he said.
Meanwhile, another group of protesters led by Devendra Mahto, who has been on a hunger strike for the past six days, said it had also received an invitation from the government for talks and had submitted the names of an eight-member delegation for discussions.
The protesters are demanding cancellation of the 14th JPSC examination and an independent probe into the alleged irregularities by either the CBI or a panel of retired high court judges from outside Jharkhand.
The agitation over the alleged irregularities in the JPSC recruitment examinations entered its 14th day on Friday, with six protesters continuing their hunger strike.
Earlier in the day, the JPSC/JSSC Reforms Manch submitted a revised delegation after the government objected to its earlier 11-member panel, which included an advocate and two technical experts.
The new delegation includes student leaders Ravindra Paswan, Piyush Kumar, Rajesh Prasad, Neetu Kujur, Ankit Raj, Kartik Soren and Shalu Kumari, among others.
Meanwhile, two Left-backed student organisations, the All India Students' Association (AISA) and the All India Students' Federation (AISF), organised a march towards the Assembly in solidarity with the protesters.
The JPSC-JSSC Reforms Manch, however, clarified that it was not part of the march, though it welcomed moral support from any organisation.
The march was briefly disrupted when AISA national president Neha Bora was targeted with ink by a man near Birsa Chowk.
The accused, identified as Amarnath Pandey, was detained by police for questioning.
Bora alleged that the attack was an attempt to intimidate the student movement, while the BJP dismissed the charge, calling the incident a "stage-managed drama".
The ABVP also denied any involvement and condemned the attack.
The issue also resonated inside the Jharkhand Assembly, where BJP legislators disrupted proceedings, demanding a court-monitored CBI probe into the alleged recruitment irregularities and forcing the House to be adjourned for the day.
(With inputs from PTI)