Ranchi: The Jharkhand government is facing sharp criticism from protesting students after the Jharkhand High Court stayed its order cancelling the 11th to 13th JPSC Civil Services examinations and appointments. Student leaders have accused the Hemant Soren government of deliberately misleading lakhs of aspirants and using the cancellation announcement to bring their prolonged protest to an end.
The students’ anger stems not merely from the High Court’s intervention, but from what they describe as the government’s conduct before the hearing. According to the protesting leaders, the government had assured them that their demands had been accepted, that the examinations would be cancelled and that a proper investigation would be conducted into alleged irregularities and paper leaks.
However, when the matter came before the High Court, the government’s conduct, they alleged, raised serious questions about whether those assurances were genuine.
Student leader Ravindra Paswan said the events in court made it clear to the protesters that the government had “deceived” lakhs of students. He alleged that the government had sought to pacify the agitation by announcing the cancellation of the examinations while simultaneously allowing appointments to proceed.
Paswan said the students had trusted the government and believed that the Chief Minister would not “do politics with students”. He alleged that the government’s approach had now destroyed that trust.
“The government had only intended to end the students’ protest in one way or another,” Paswan alleged, claiming that the government appeared to have adopted a contradictory approach announcing cancellation on one side while allowing joining on the other.
#WATCH | Ranchi: On Jharkhand High Court staying State Govt's order cancelling 11th to 13th JPSC exams and appointments, student leader Ravindra Paswan says, "With whatever we saw in the Court today, it became clear that the Govt deceived the lakhs of students in Jharkhand. The… pic.twitter.com/DvMzsLf8gL
— ANI (@ANI) August 20, 2026
The student leader announced that the agitation would now intensify, saying students would burn effigies of Chief Minister Hemant Soren across all 24 districts of Jharkhand.
#WATCH | Ranchi: On Jharkhand High Court staying State Govt's order cancelling 11th to 13th JPSC exams and appointments, student leader Ravindra Paswan says, "The coalition Govt in Jharkhand – Hemant Soren addresses a press conference and says that the Govt has accepted the… pic.twitter.com/C00MlKULg6
— ANI (@ANI) August 20, 2026
26 days of protest, followed by what students call ‘deceit’
The JPSC-JSSC Reform Manch had been staging a peaceful agitation for more than 26 days, according to student leader Kunal Pratap Singh. The protest had included hunger strikes and a satyagraha, with students, parents, teachers and members of the public extending support.
Singh questioned why senior government legal representation was allegedly absent when the matter concerning thousands of students came before the High Court.
“If it is any case of the CM himself, advocates like Kapil Sibal come from Delhi. But when such an important matter of the students of Jharkhand is heard in High Court, the Advocate General doesn’t even appear,” Singh said.
#WATCH | Ranchi: On Jharkhand High Court staying State Govt's order cancelling 11th to 13th JPSC exams and appointments, student leader Kunal Pratap Singh says, "…JPSC-JSSC Reform Manch had been staging a peaceful protest for the last 26 days…What did we get in return?… pic.twitter.com/QMP2EhjNSr
— ANI (@ANI) August 20, 2026
He alleged that the government’s conduct suggested that the protest had been allowed to continue only until the administration found a way to neutralise it. “This clearly shows that this was a trap to end the protest, ruin 26 days of our hard work and play with the emotions of the students of Jharkhand,” Singh alleged.
Students question government’s intent
Student leader Devendra Nath Mahto said the protesters respected the High Court’s order and remained confident that the judiciary would examine the matter fairly. However, he questioned why the government’s legal representatives allegedly failed to properly place the CID investigation report before the court.
#WATCH | Ranchi: On Jharkhand High Court staying State Govt's order cancelling 11th to 13th JPSC exams and appointments, student leader Devendra Nath Mahto says, "…I respect the order by the High Court. I am confident that the High Court will do justice to the principle with… pic.twitter.com/NzTB6heLtE
— ANI (@ANI) August 20, 2026
Mahto said the students had taken to the streets against alleged paper leaks and irregularities because such issues were threatening the future of lakhs of aspirants in the state. He also pointed to the government’s August 17 announcement and the Personnel Department notification issued on August 18, under which action was reportedly taken in relation to 45 examinations 22 cancellations, investigations into 17 examinations and postponement of six.
Ranchi, Jharkhand: On Jharkhand High Court staying State Govt's order cancelling 11th to 13th JPSC exams and appointments, Student leader Devendra Nath Mahato says, "Today the Hon'ble Jharkhand High Court, while hearing the 11th to 13th Civil Services Examination and Food Safety… pic.twitter.com/1iiEE2Vbsm
— IANS (@ians_india) August 20, 2026
The students now fear that these announcements may have been aimed primarily at defusing their agitation rather than addressing the underlying allegations.
Another student leader, Piyush Kumar, accused the government of attempting to deceive the protesters and questioned the absence of the Advocate General during the proceedings. He alleged that the government’s representation before the court failed to demonstrate the seriousness expected in a matter affecting the future of thousands of young people.
“We will announce our next steps soon,” Kumar said, adding that students had already issued a 60-day ultimatum and would act before its expiry. He invoked the language of “Sampoorna Kranti” and “Ulgulan”, while stressing that the students’ next phase of agitation would remain constitutional.
#WATCH | Ranchi: On Jharkhand High Court staying State Govt's order cancelling 11th to 13th JPSC exams and appointments, student leader Piyush Kumar says, "Looking at the situation there, it becomes very clear that the Govt attempted to deceive us. The Govt has cheated us.… pic.twitter.com/K7tfUocwjJ
— ANI (@ANI) August 20, 2026
The High Court’s stay has transformed what students believed was a breakthrough into a fresh confrontation with the state government. For the protesters, the central issue is no longer limited to the fate of the JPSC examinations. It is now about whether the government kept its word after months of student anger over alleged irregularities.
