Ranchi police files FIR against JPSC-JSSC protest leaders over Aug 21 police-students clash

The Ranchi Police has on Saturday filed at least three FIRs against 14 named and more than 200 unnamed persons in connection with the August 21 clash between police and JPSC-JSSC protesters in Jharkhand's Capital, an official said.Ranchi, Aug 21 (ANI): Students during a protest against the Jharkhand government following the High Court's stay on the cancellation of the exam, in Ranchi on Friday. (ANI Photo)“Three FIRs have been registered against 14 named accused and over 200 unidentified persons at Kotwali police station in connection with Friday's clash,” PTI news agency cited Ranchi City SP Paras Rana as saying. Among those named are Kunal Pratap Singh, Piyush Kumar, and Ravindra Paswan – leaders of the JPSC-JSSC Reforms Manch, which was spearheading the protest against alleged irregularities in Jharkhand recruitment exams.The FIRs were registered for allegedly obstructing government work and clashing with police, according to the PTI report.One FIR lodged by police, other two complaints by individualsOne of the three FIRs was lodged by police against alleged miscreants for obstructing government duty and violating route-chart norms, another official said. Meanwhile, the other two were filed on the basis of complaints made by indviduals, PTI reported.This comes after a scuffle broke out Friday after protesters attempted to burn effigies of Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, officials said. The ruling Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) party workers in the state also disrupted a statewide effigy-burning campaign organised by students, leading to clashes in at least four district headquarters in the state.Student leaders under the JPSC-JSSC Reforms Manch have accused the state government of “deceiving”job aspirants after the high court stayed some notifications cancelling appointments through the 11th and 13th JPSC examinations and the JSSC-CGL.The HC had on Friday stayed notifications cancelling the appointments of Child Development Project Officers (CDPOs) and those recruited through the JSSC-CGL examination. A day earlier, it had stayed notifications cancelling the 11th and 13th Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC) examinations, and also stayed the order cancelling the appointments of food safety officers.