RANCHI: The Jharkhand Cabinet’s decision to cancel the JSSC-CGL examination has triggered an uproar among candidates who had already cleared the exam and were posted across the state.
The successful candidates had apparently sensed on Monday morning that, amid mounting pressure from students protesting at Jaipal Singh Munda Stadium, the government could take a decision that might jeopardise their jobs.
After completing their shifts, these young government employees—who had secured their positions through the JSSC-CGL examination—took to the streets to protect their seven-month-old careers.
They formed a human chain and appealed to Chief Minister Hemant Soren not to take any decision under pressure from the protests that could put their jobs at risk.
Meanwhile, the Chief Minister announced the cancellation of the JSSC-CGL and 14th JPSC PT exams. As soon as the announcement was made, hundreds of candidates formed a human chain in an attempt to convey their concerns to the government.
The sentiment among the youth was that “mob rule” had prevailed in the state while meritorious candidates had been made to suffer.
“Mob rule has won, and the system has lost,” said one successful JSSC-CGL candidate posted in Ranchi. The candidates maintained that they had not been defeated, asserting that they had earned their jobs through hard work and merit. They said they would now place their faith in the judiciary and challenge the decision in court.
“We will go to court; that is where we will get justice,” they said.
The successful JSSC-CGL candidates, however, said the Cabinet’s decision had put their seven-month-old careers at stake and vowed to seek legal recourse to protect their appointments.
“We were appointed following a High Court division bench ruling. We had the Supreme Court's seal of approval, yet the government snatched our jobs. All of a sudden, we lost our jobs. We are upset with the Chief Minister. Sir, please reconsider this decision,” said a successful candidate, Avdhesh. “What about the honourable court's stance; what will happen to the hundreds of our brothers who resigned from previous jobs to join this one?” he added.
Another student said that they should not be punished for an act they had not committed and offered to face any inquiry.
“If the government and the CID wish, they can scrutinise the answer sheets of every successful JSSC-CGL candidate—conduct any investigation they desire—for we have done nothing wrong,” said another candidate. It was the court that had secured them these jobs, and it would be the court that would save them through its orders, as they were not at fault, he added.
Meanwhile, security had been beefed up at the state secretariat, with a large number of police personnel deployed and security arrangements being personally monitored by the SSP and City SP.
As the Chief Minister’s convoy passed through the campus, CGL employees raised slogans against the ministers.
Several agitated employees also sat in front of the main gate of the Project Building, raising slogans in protest against the Cabinet’s decision.