Union Minister of State for Defence Sanjay Seth on Sunday, 9 August visited the student protest site at Jaipal Singh Munda Stadium in Ranchi, launching a sharp attack on the Jharkhand government and directly challenging Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi to show up in person for the students agitating over alleged irregularities in the 14th Civil Services Preliminary Examination conducted by the Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC).

The Protest and Its Background

Students have been staging a continuous demonstration since alleged irregularities in the JPSC exam came to light on 2 July. The agitation entered its 16th consecutive day on Sunday with no sign of retreat. A second round of talks between protesting students and the state government ended without any breakthrough or agreement on key demands.

Seth's Direct Challenge to Rahul Gandhi

Speaking at the protest site, Seth questioned Gandhi's absence from the agitation. Rahul Gandhi had recently stated that every government should work toward improving the education system, but Seth dismissed this as insufficient.

'Rahul Gandhi, the people of Jharkhand are calling you, but Rahul Gandhi is missing. Rahul Gandhi is a hypocrite; he looks at everything through a political lens. There is no political benefit here because you are in government; you run wherever there are elections,' Seth said.

He went further, issuing a pointed challenge: 'Rahul Gandhi, if you have even a little morality left, if you have any morality, I challenge you: if you have the courage, come to Ranchi. If he has the courage, he should sit outside the Chief Minister's residence.'

Seth accused Gandhi of maintaining 'double standards' by comparing the Ranchi student protest with demonstrations held at Delhi's Jantar Mantar. He reiterated that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) would continue to stand with the students.

Allegations of 'Divide and Rule' Against the State Government

Seth also alleged that members of the National Students' Union of India (NSUI) and the JMM Yuva Morcha were being brought into the protest to divide the students and weaken their movement — a charge he compared to British colonial tactics.

'Within 24 hours itself, on the first day, the Chief Minister should have come to meet them. These are our children, our daughters, and the government remained silent for 16 days. Now, the way the British had used the policy of divide and rule, the state government is using divide and rule, approaching different organisations separately and putting up a drama,' Seth alleged.

Jharkhand BJP President Echoes the Criticism

Jharkhand BJP President Aditya Sahu separately accused the state government of politicising the issue rather than addressing student demands. Speaking to reporters, Sahu said: 'The way our children in Jharkhand, our students, are shedding tears from their eyes, I feel that the government does not dare to understand the tears of these children. These are not just three children shedding tears; the tears of hundreds of students of this state are flowing.'

Sahu also questioned why the government was resisting a CBI probe into the alleged JPSC irregularities, and echoed the challenge to Gandhi: 'If Rahul Gandhi has the courage, he should sit outside the Chief Minister's residence just like he did outside the Prime Minister's residence.'

What Happens Next

With two rounds of talks having failed and the protest now in its third week, pressure on the Hemant Soren-led Jharkhand government is mounting. The BJP's visible presence at the protest site signals that the agitation is increasingly acquiring a political dimension, even as student groups insist their demands — including a fair probe into the JPSC exam — remain the central issue. Whether the government moves to meet those demands or a third round of talks is convened will determine the protest's trajectory in the days ahead.