This question sits at the very centre of the deadlock. Six rounds of talks between the state government and student representatives had failed to resolve it even before August 10.
On August 9, the government did move considerably. It agreed to cancel the 14th JPSC Civil Services Preliminary Examination along with the JPSC Backlog 2023 and Backlog 2025 examinations. The Governor accepted the resignation of three JPSC members, Ajita Bhattacharya, Anima Hansda and Jamal Ahmed.
The government also announced a Criminal Investigation Department, or CID, probe into irregularities in the 14th JPSC exam and the 2023-25 backlog recruitments, said it would seek an Enforcement Directorate, or ED, investigation into suspected financial irregularities, and promised a fast-track court that would file chargesheets within 90 days of the investigation. Jharkhand Minister Sudivya Kumar Sonu also announced an expert committee involving representatives from IIT-ISM, IIM Ranchi and XLRI to recommend structural reforms to the recruitment examination system.
What the government has not agreed to is a CBI probe, or the cancellation of the JSSC Combined Graduate Level, CGL, examinations conducted after 2019. Minister Sonu explained that the state could not unilaterally cancel the CGL exam because it was conducted under directions of the Jharkhand High Court and Supreme Court and remains under judicial monitoring.
The Jharkhand High Court also had earlier rejected a petition seeking a CBI investigation into the JSSC-CGL paper leak controversy, directing instead that the state’s own probe process continue under court supervision.
As an alternative, the government proposed a monitoring committee headed by a retired judge to oversee the investigation, an offer the students have not accepted. For students, the demand for a CBI probe is less about a single exam and more about trust.
A central agency like CBI, they argue, is seen as independent of the state government that appoints and oversees CID officers, and would inspire more public confidence than an internal inquiry. The government’s position is that it has already gone beyond assurances, offering cancellations, resignations, a criminal probe, a financial probe and a fast-track court, and that a CBI referral is neither legally straightforward given ongoing judicial proceedings, nor, in its view, necessary given the steps already taken.
What are other demands of students protesting against Jharkhand government?
- Cancellation of tainted exams — 14th JPSC Preliminary Examination (already conceded), plus JPSC Backlog 2023 and Backlog 2025 exams
- Review of all TDPL-conducted exams — scrutiny of every examination run by the private agency TDPL, including those linked to former manager Abhay Tiwari
- Cancellation of JSSC-CGL exams post-2019 — a demand the government has resisted, citing ongoing High Court/Supreme Court monitoring
- Action against those responsible — punishment for officials and candidates found guilty of irregularities, not just outside “masterminds”
- Structural reforms in JPSC and JSSC — timely, regularly scheduled exams instead of repeated delays and cancellations
- Published cutoff marks — transparency on qualifying scores, which aspirants say is currently withheld
- A transparent, corruption-free recruitment process — a long-term system overhaul, not just fixes for this exam cycle
Taken together, these demands reflect a movement that has grown beyond a single exam controversy into a broader call for structural accountability in Jharkhand’s recruitment system.
Although, the government has conceded several points, including exam cancellations and commission resignations, the core disagreement over an independent CBI probe remains unresolved. Until that trust deficit is addressed, the protest is unlikely to fully wind down, even as both sides continue negotiations.