Patna: The Bihar Public Service Commission (BPSC) exam paper leak row intensified on Monday as political strategist-turned-politician Prashant Kishor said he will sit on an indefinite strike from January 2, 2025, and continue fighting till the demands of the students are met.
He also warned of approaching the court and Human Rights Commission against the lathi charge on BPSC aspirants and said he will also file an FIR against the police. This comes after a case was filed against him and his associates for creating a law and order problem.
BPSC chairman Ravi Manu Bhai Parmar met Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar to apprise him of the situation. BPSC has already clarified that neither will the exam be cancelled nor a retest will be held.
Earlier in the day, MP Pappu Yadav submitted a memorandum to the Governor seeking action against the person responsible for misleading students that led to the ruckus yesterday.
Earlier on Sunday, police resorted to lathi charges and water cannon action on students protesting at Gandhi Maidan in Patna, demanding the cancellation of BPSC exams and a retest of the 70th Combined Competitive Preliminary Examination. Many students were injured in the incident.
When Prashant Kishore reached the venue he was accused of running away during the lathi charge. Refuting the allegations against him, Kishor said he did not run away from Gandhi Maidan, warning that he will not spare anyone.
"We will go to the court and Human Rights Commission against the lathi charge. If the police have filed an FIR against us, then I am also going to file an FIR against the police. I am not going to be afraid of anyone in either uniform or kurta pajama," Kishore said.
Kishore also said that if the demands of the students are not met, he will sit on a dharna for an indefinite period from January 2. "I will keep fighting in support of the students till my last breath," he added.
He said, "Police took to lathi charge 45 minutes after I moved away from the spot. I will seek action against officials who ordered lathi charge. A case will be filed in court and human rights against whoever responsible for the incident." He demanded that the FIRs filed against innocent students should be withdrawn immediately.
Slamming Chief Minister Nitish Kumar for the police action, Kishor said that the CM's career is set to be doomed and the political situation in Bihar will change within a year. "Nitish Kumar will no longer serve as the CM. More than half the posts have already been sold out and a deal worth thousands of crores has been fixed so the government does not want to conduct retest," he alleged.
Despite being denied permission, Kishor headed the protest by BPSC candidates at Gandhi Maidan yesterday.
The protest erupted a few days prior to the examination, which was held on December 13 at 925 centres across the state. Just a few days before this, many candidates started opposing normalisation in the examination. The controversy over this increased so rapidly that the candidates started protesting in the street.
According to experts, normalisation means when the number of candidates appearing for the examination is very high, then the examination is conducted in two or more shifts. In such a situation, if the paper of any shift is difficult the candidates get fewer marks in it.
On the other hand, the paper of the second shift is a little easier, and the candidates get more marks on it, then in case the normalisation process is applied, the marks of the candidates of the shift with the difficult paper will be increased slightly.
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