As BPSC protests continue, Prashant Kishor makes an appeal to students

Prashant Kishor, the founder of the Jan Suraaj Party, met the students protesting alleged irregularities in the Bihar Public Service Commission (BPSC) exam this year. The protests have been going on in Patna since the exam was conducted on December 13. It has now won the support of several prominent political figures, educationists and activists.

Prashant Kishor has voiced his support for the agitating students, calling for an end to systemic corruption in Bihar's examinations. Speaking to protesters in Patna, Kishor revealed that, prior to the demonstration, he had held extensive talks with education sector officials. "No exam in Bihar has happened without corruption or paper leaks. We must unite to ensure this ends," Kishor said. He urged students and young people to gather at the Gandhi Statue on Saturday, stating, "Whatever decision is taken tomorrow, we will stand by the students."

The protests, which began in mid-December, have been fuelled by claims of a question paper leak and several other irregularities during the BPSC exam. Many candidates allege that the question papers were distributed late, some even receiving their papers nearly an hour after the exam was scheduled to begin. Others claim that answer sheets were torn, raising further suspicions of malpractice.

Bihar's authorities, however, have firmly rejected calls for the cancellation of the entire exam. Rajesh Kumar Singh, the BPSC Examination Controller, stated on Friday that there was "no question of cancelling the entire BPSC exam," emphasising that the preliminary examination at the Bapu Pariksha Parisar centre was only cancelled due to disruptions caused by a group of protesters. Singh alleged that private coaching institutes were behind the mobilisation of students and dismissed the demand for cancellation as baseless.

Despite these assertions, the protests show no signs of abating. Last week, the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader and former Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav met with protesters at the Gardani Bagh site, voicing his solidarity with the aspirants and writing a letter to Chief Minister Nitish Kumar demanding the cancellation of the exam. Similar statements have come from Bihar Congress leader Akhilesh Prasad Singh and Independent MP Pappu Yadav, both of whom are part of the INDIA alliance.

Prashant Kishor, too, has criticised the state government's response to the protests, accusing the Nitish Kumar administration of using "lathi-tantra" (rule of the stick) to quell dissent. "In Bihar, democracy has been replaced by force," he said. "If people are expressing their views peacefully, there is no justification for lathi charges. The government must listen to the students."

Wave of unrest among students

The protests have gained further traction with the involvement of social media influencers and educators. YouTube educator Faizal Khan, popularly known as Khan Sir, also joined the protesters on Friday. Khan, who had earlier expressed his support for the students, was seen chanting slogans alongside them. He echoed the demands for a re-examination, stating, "We are not afraid of challenging exams, but the questions must be fair and should not insult our intelligence."

The protesters are insistent that the entire exam be annulled, arguing that re-examining just one centre would be unjust. They demand a level playing field, as many believe that the allegations of malpractice affect all candidates across the state, not just those at a single exam centre.