RANCHI, Aug 11: Normal life was affected in parts of Jharkhand on Tuesday as BJP workers enforced a state-wide bandh in protest against police action on job aspirants during their march to the state assembly a day ago over alleged irregularities in recruitment examinations.
Most schools and business establishments remained closed, while vehicular movement was very low in the state capital Ranchi and several other cities.
The shutdown, announced after the police used water cannons, tear gas and batons against protesters in Ranchi on Monday, was being observed from 8 am to midnight, with essential services kept outside its purview, BJP state president Aditya Sahu said.
The BJP described the police action as “atrocities” against students and accused the JMM-led government of using force instead of addressing their grievances.
The party has also backed the protesters’ demand for an independent probe into the alleged irregularities in recruitment examinations conducted by the Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC) and Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission (JSSC).
Meanwhile, the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad, which strongly condemned the alleged police atrocities on students, will take out a ‘Vidhan Sabha March’.
They will hold the procession from the old Vidhan Sabha to the new assembly premises.
The bandh followed a tense day in Ranchi during which thousands of job aspirants marched towards the assembly, breached multiple barricades and clashed with the police.
Several protesters claimed they were injured, while Ranchi police claimed 14 policemen suffered injuries during protests.
The police used water cannons near Jagannathpur Temple and fired tear gas shells as protesters moved towards the Assembly.
The protesters have been agitating since July 25, demanding transparency in recruitment examinations, reforms in the functioning of the JPSC and JSSC, cancellation of several examinations and an independent investigation by the CBI or a panel of retired High Court judges from outside Jharkhand.
BJP state president Sahu alleged that students had been treated like criminals during the march and claimed that several protesters were injured. (Agencies)
