A bandh called by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is underway in Jharkhand as student protests over alleged irregularities in a state recruitment exam continue. The protesters are demanding the cancellation of the Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission's Combined Graduate Level (JSSC-CGL) examination, a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the alleged irregularities, and reforms in the recruitment process.
Negotiations between the students and state officials have stalled. The government claims it has accepted 98% of the demands, a figure the students have rejected as false. They have planned a march to the Vidhan Sabha later in the day.
The BJP called the bandh to protest what it described as police atrocities against the demonstrators.