Jharkhand: JSSC-CGL exam cancellation to end one protest triggers another as 2,000 fear job loss

Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren’s announcement to cancel the JSSC-CGL exam has raised questions over the future of at least 2,000 people who fear losing jobs they earned after clearing the test.

Additionally read: Jharkhand protest updates on August 18

“Tell us our crime. Don’t throw us out,” said one of the successful candidates who camped outside the Jharkhand Secretariat on Tuesday (August 18, 2026), demanding a fair opportunity to defend themselves.

In the face of sustained protests by job aspirants over alleged irregularities in exams, the Jharkhand administration on Monday (August 17) night announced it would cancel the Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission-Combined Graduate Level (JSSC-CGL) exam and all recruitment tests conducted by outsourced agency TSR Data Processing Pvt. Ltd. (TDPL) since 2014.

While the decision, which was among the major demands of the exam protesters, was likely to quell the agitation, the administration was now faced with a fresh concern as the candidates who cleared the JSSC-CGL exam fear losing their jobs.

These candidates, who are now government employees, say they are not resisted to an investigation into the alleged irregularities but demand a fair opportunity to defend themselves. Both the protesting aspirants and successful candidates of the JSSC-CGL exam now demand a CBI probe.

Higher and Technical Education Minister Sudivya Kumar said the successful candidates could seek legal recourse, and JMM spokesperson Manoj Pandey acknowledged their anguish, saying the party was sympathetic to them.

However, the assurance that fresh vacancies would provide opportunities to deserving candidates did little to ease their uncertainty, numerous of whom have crossed the age limit.

Some threatened a hunger strike and further legal action.

In a desperate appeal outside the Jharkhand Secretariat, Kaushal Kumar, an assistant section officer, said, “We were appointed after a court order. We have come with all documents. Don’t cancel it [exam]. Probe it. Do a CBI probe or whatever investigation you deem fit, but please don’t do injustice to us.”

On Monday (August 17) night, these successful candidates attempted to meet Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren as he chaired a marathon meeting with his cabinet colleagues and decided to agree to the JPSC-JSSC Reforms Manch’s demand to cancel the recruitment exams over alleged irregularities.

The Manch has been spearheading the over two-week protest against alleged corruption in job exams.

Another appointee, Chanda Kumari, questioned whether candidates had been given a fair opportunity to defend themselves.

“Democracy means that 100 guilty may be spared, but no innocent should be punished,” she said, alleging that successful candidates were not given sufficient time to present their side before the decision was produced.

Ms. Kumari said she came from a poor background and had qualified for the 14th JPSC examination and the forest range officer mains examination through hard work. She rejected allegations that all those who secured appointments had collectively benefited from the alleged malpractice.

“We could not have bought all these jobs,” she said. Ms. Kumari alleged that they were being punished even before any wrongdoing had been established against them.

The candidates point to previous judicial proceedings to reinforce their claim that their appointments were not arbitrary.

They say the recruitment process had been subjected to probe and court scrutiny, and the High Court in its December judgment had rejected a demand for a CBI probe, holding the existing SIT investigation was adequate.