Jharkhand excise constable exam row: BJP seeks CBI probe, meets Governor with memorandum

Posted on by Vividh Bharathi

Ranchi, April 14 (IANS) Political tensions escalated in Jharkhand on Tuesday following allegations of large-scale irregularities and a suspected paper leak in the recently conducted excise constable examination.

A high-level delegation of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) met Governor Santosh Gangwar at Lok Bhavan in Ranchi and submitted a seven-point memorandum, questioning the credibility and functioning of the state’s key recruitment bodies — the Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission (JSSC) and the Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC).

The BJP delegation was led by state unit chief Aditya Sahu and Leader of Opposition Babulal Marandi and included several party MLAs and senior leaders. In its memorandum, the party demanded a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the alleged irregularities, asserting that only an independent agency could ensure a fair and impartial investigation.

According to the memorandum, serious discrepancies were reported during the excise constable examination conducted by JSSC on April 12, 2026. In Tamar, near Ranchi, authorities uncovered an alleged setup at an under-construction building where candidates were reportedly being coached to memorise answers. Several individuals were detained from the site, and electronic equipment such as computers, printers, and laptops, along with suspicious documents, were seized.

Describing the incident as indicative of a well-organised “exam mafia”, the BJP raised concerns about the integrity of the entire recruitment process. The examination, conducted across 370 centres in eight districts for 583 posts, saw participation from around 1.48 lakh candidates. The party argued that if such malpractice could occur at one centre, the possibility of similar irregularities at other centres cannot be ruled out.

The BJP also questioned the JSSC’s stance, noting that the commission has denied any paper leak despite the reported findings, which, it said, further deepens suspicion. It pointed to past controversies involving JSSC and JPSC examinations, alleging a pattern of irregularities and lack of accountability. The memorandum also claimed that in previous instances, individuals who exposed such issues faced punitive action.

The party’s seven-point charter of demands includes a CBI inquiry, an inter-state investigation into solver gangs, strict action against those involved, justice for affected candidates, enhanced transparency in JPSC examinations, a review of recruitment exams conducted over the past six years, and comprehensive reforms to prevent future lapses.

Urging immediate intervention, the BJP appealed to the Governor to ensure a transparent and unbiased probe, stating that restoring public trust in the recruitment system is essential for safeguarding the interests of aspiring candidates.

–IANS

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FairPoint: India’s Operation Sindoor forces Pakistan to own its terror proxies, world cannot stay silent

New Delhi, May 11 (IANS) Operation Sindoor is a success as it has brought Pakistan to its knees and helped India starkly expose the neighbouring country’s grooming of terror gangs and complicity in global terrorism.

The operation was not just a tribute to the victims of terror or an act of vengeance for the deaths in Pahalgam – it is a symbol of the fight against terrorism that Pakistan has been unleashing not only in India but also across other countries.

The operation has revealed bitter truths about Pakistan – something that even the US operation to eliminate Osama Bin Laden could not fully expose, particularly the Pakistan Army’s role in nurturing terrorist groups. These gangs have unleashed terror in India for decades, killing hundreds of innocent civilians and causing the ethnic cleansing of Hindus from Kashmir.

India has repeatedly informed the world about Pakistan’s involvement in various terror attacks across the country. New Delhi has provided substantial evidence, the most significant being Ajmal Kasab, the terrorist captured alive during the Mumbai attacks on November 26, 2008, and proof of the Pulwama terror attack. India has also consistently warned the global community about Pakistan’s designs in Kashmir – a sinister campaign it has pursued since 1947, and the latest incident is the Pahalgam massacre.

Unfortunately, the world has largely turned a blind eye. There have been statements, but no concrete action has been taken against what is essentially a terror factory. While the United Nations and several countries have designated individual Pakistani terrorists, they have stopped short of labelling the country itself. Operation Sindoor has provided irrefutable proof – evidence too strong to ignore.

The operation was launched on May 7 in response to the terror attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, on April 22, which killed 26 civilians. The attack was quickly claimed by The Resistance Front (TRF), an offshoot of the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), which emerged after the abrogation of Article 370 in J&K in August 2019.

The close ties between Pakistan and TRF became evident during discussions about the Pahalgam attack at the United Nations Security Council. Pakistan played a key role in removing the group’s name from the UNSC’s condemnation statement. If Pakistan had no connection to the attack, why the agitation over naming the group?

Under Operation Sindoor, Indian Armed Forces targeted terrorist infrastructure at nine specific locations in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. All these sites were known terror bases, and several designated terrorists were neutralised.

Videos and photographs surfaced showing Abdur Rauf, a US-designated terrorist, leading prayers for those killed in the strike on the LeT’s headquarters in Muridke. The funeral was attended by military officers in uniform. The terrorists were given “state honours” – draped in the Pakistani national flag, saluted by army officers, and one coffin even received a floral wreath from the Pakistan Army Chief.

In the initial phase of Operation Sindoor, five terrorists, assigned key roles in Jaish-e-Mohammed and LeT – were eliminated. They were identified as Mudassar Khadian Khas, Hafiz Muhammed Jameel, Mohammad Yusuf Azhar, Khalid alias Abu Akasha, and Mohammad Hassan Khan. Senior Pakistani military officers attended their funerals. The photos and videos have gone viral, further exposing the decades-old nexus between Pakistan’s military and terrorist organisations.

In perhaps the most damning admission, Pakistan’s Defence Minister, Khawaja Asif, provided undeniable proof by admitting in a television interview that Pakistan had funded and supported terrorist groups for decades, especially during the US-led wars in Afghanistan. Asif described this involvement as “dirty work” done for the United States and the West, including the UK.

Going even further, Asif told Parliament that these terrorists constitute Pakistan’s “second line of defence,” and that “students of madrasas would be deployed when needed.”

It is also telling that the Director General of Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry – the man briefing the world on India-Pakistan tensions – is the son of a declared terrorist, Sultan Bashiruddin Mahmood, a known aide of Osama bin Laden.

Operation Sindoor has laid bare how Pakistan’s political and military establishments are dangerously intertwined with jihadist and terrorist elements. It is time for the world to sit up and take notice.

The evidence is overwhelming – Pakistan is a rogue terror state that weaponises religion to further its agenda. India’s operation has dismantled Pakistan’s terror network in ways the Americans could not. It proves that India has the capacity to make Pakistan bend.

Operation Sindoor is not just a tribute to the women who lost their husbands in Pahalgam – it is a bold demonstration of the real Shakti of India’s defence forces and political resolve. It reveals evidence that Pakistan’s state policy favours terrorism. Can the world ignore the Operation Sindoor proofs?

(Deepika Bhan can be contacted at deepika.b@ians.in)

–IANS

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Srinagar-Jammu national highway reopens for passenger traffic

Srinagar, April 7 (IANS) The strategic Srinagar-Jammu national highway was reopened for passenger traffic on Tuesday after it remained closed for a day due to a landslide and shooting stones in Ramban district of J&K.

Traffic department officials said this morning that passenger traffic has been allowed from both sides on the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway (NH-44).

Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Traffic National Highway, Raja Adil, told reporters that vehicular movement has resumed on the national highway after the restoration of the strategic connectivity.

Authorities have advised commuters to strictly adhere to lane discipline, warning that overtaking and wrong-lane driving may lead to traffic congestion along the route.

People have also been urged not to listen to rumours and instead verify road status through official platforms of the Traffic Police, including their social media handles and Traffic Control Units (TCUs).

The nearly 300 km long highway is the lifeline for supplies for the landlocked Valley, as most essentials of life are still brought into Kashmir through this highway.

LPG, petrol, diesel, kerosene, mutton, poultry products and vegetables are still brought into the Valley through tankers and trucks despite the fully operational all-weather rail link between Jammu and Kashmir.

Unless cargo trains start bringing in essentials of life and carry out fruit, etc., from the Valley to national markets during the peak season, the dependence on the highway will continue.

With massive renovation and restoration carried out by laying new bridges, flyovers and tunnels, the travel time between Srinagar and Jammu has been brought down to five hours from the previous 10 to 12 hours.

Despite this, the highway remains a highly weather-dependent road because of the dicey stretch from Ramsoo to Ramban town. Shooting stones and landslides triggered by rain often block the highway in this stretch of the road, and restoration work sometimes takes days together.

–IANS

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Ill-fated runway 23 of Ahmedabad airport back in news after 1988 crash

New Delhi/Ahmedabad, June 12 (IANS) The crash of Air India plane near Ahmedabad airport on Thursday was the second such major tragedy in the city since 1988, with both incidents linked to runway 23.

As many as 133 people out of 139 on board were killed on October 19, 1988, when Indian Airlines Flight 113 from Mumbai to Ahmedabad crashed while approaching the airport’s runway 23. Before crashing, the flight to London on Thursday had also taken off from runway 23.

Findings of a probe into the 1988 incident attributed it to pilots’ error linked to descending below the minimum altitude of 500 feet or 150 metre.

There were reports that the two pilots had problems sighting the runway and lost track of their altitude in their efforts to approach the airport that lacked approach lights or visual approach slope indicator (VASI).

While the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) officials are still to arrive at a conclusion on the cause of Thursday’s crash, court of inquiry into the 1988 crash had concluded that the aircraft hit trees and high-tension electricity tower close to Chiloda Kotarpur Village.

The plane crashed near Noble Nagar Housing Society, about 2.5 km from the approach end of runway due to the pilots attempting to land without any clearance from the Air Traffic Control, it said.

The plane crash in 1988 resulted in the death of Professor Labdhi Bhandari from Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad.

All six crew members, including two pilots, and 129 passengers, including 5 children, perished in the Ahmedabad crash in 1988.

An inquiry panel had confirmed pilots’ poor judgement due to non-adherence to laid down procedure, under poor visibility conditions.

In a suit filed by victims’ kin, an Ahmedabad court had said that the degree of negligence on the part of the pilot-in-command and the co-pilot of the Indian Airlines was so high that the same amounted to “recklessness” on their part as contemplated by the Carriage by Air Act, 1972.

–IANS

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