BPSC Candidates Stage Big Protest in Patna, FIR Against Prashant Kishor For Inciting Them

Patna: The Patna police have registered an FIR against Prashant Kishor, the Jan Suraaj Party founder, and others for allegedly instigating Bihar Public Service Commission (BPSC) candidates, protesting in Bihar's capital city Patna on Sunday. The police have registered the case against Kishor in various sections after accusations surfaced against Kishor for his alleged role in instigating BPSC candidates to protest and create chaos in Patna. Among those booked include Jan Suraaj Party President Manoj Bharti apart from Kishor.

The protest, which has been ongoing for several days, saw candidates attempt to march towards the Chief Minister Nitish Kumar government's office to hold talks. However, they were met with barricades, and when they broke through, the police responded with water cannons and lathi charges late Sunday night.

The District Magistrate of Patna confirmed that the case was registered due to the violation of law and order during the demonstration. The investigation is ongoing, and strict action has been assured against the culprits.

Police Resorted To Lathi Charge And Water Cannons On Protesters

As per reports, over 21 named individuals in the FIR, including Prashant Kishor, and over 600 unknown people have been accused in the case. Notably, Prashant Kishor floated his political party, Jan Suraaj Party, in October 2024 and also contested the Bihar Assembly bypolls.  

According to the information, the FIR has been registered in the Gandhi Maidan Police Station in Patna. Among the 21 named individuals included the names of Prashant Kishor, his two guards, Manoj Bharti, Rahmanshu Mishra (Coaching Director), Nikhil Mani Tiwari, Subhash Kumar Thakur, Shubham Snehil, Anand Mishra, Rakesh Kumar Mishra, Vishnu Kumar, Sujeet Kumar and others.

Earlier, on December 28, the Jan Suraj Party's request to hold a Student Parliament at Gandhi Maidan in Patna was denied by the district administration. According to the police, despite the denial of permission, they gathered an unauthorised crowd, led a procession to JP Golambar without permission, blocked roads, damaged loudspeakers, and scuffled with officials, causing law-and-order issues. The crowd was later dispersed near JP Golambar.

Earlier in the evening, the protestors started the march to encircle Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's residence during which a minor clash erupted between the students and the police. A minor altercation erupted after the students broke the barricade. However, the authorities informed that the chief secretary of the Bihar government would meet a delegation of 5 members regarding the demands of the students. But, the students continued to protest and refused to leave the agitation site.

Why Are Students Protesting

The candidates have been protesting for more than a week seeking the cancellation and re-examination of the 70th Integrated Combined Competitive (Preliminary) Examination (CCE), 2024 conducted by the BPSC over allegations of question paper leak. The protesters have been staging a dharna at Gardani Bagh for several days. They contend that cancellation should be ordered across the board since re-examination for just one centre would go against the principle of a "level playing field".