Jharkhand Exam Row: Supreme Court Notice to State, JPSC Over CBI Probe Demand
The Supreme Court on Monday issued a notice to the State of Jharkhand and the Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC) in response to a petition seeking an independent, time-bound probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into alleged malpractices in the Jharkhand Combined Civil Services Preliminary Examination.
A Bench headed by the Chief Justice of India, Surya Kant, was hearing the plea filed by activist Harisharan Devgan, represented by senior advocate Manan Kumar Mishra and advocate Satyam Singh Rajput. The court’s notice marks the first step in examining the petitioner’s request for a CBI investigation, but it does not constitute any finding on the merits of the allegations.
Mr. Mishra informed the court that students had been protesting for over a month against alleged irregularities in the State-conducted examination. He argued that it was essential for the allegations to be probed by an independent agency such as the CBI, rather than the State Criminal Investigation Department (CID), which is currently investigating the case. The petitioner has sought an impartial inquiry into the roles of public officials and examination agencies involved in conducting the test.
The petition further contended that accountability should be fixed and wrongdoers brought to justice, even though the State government has already cancelled the examination. It urged the court to intervene to ensure that physical and digital evidence — including original and candidate-held carbon copies of OMR answer sheets, CCTV footage, and server audit logs — are secured and remain untampered.
Background to the case: After the results were declared on July 2, 2026, a carbon copy of a candidate’s OMR answer sheet went viral online. The sheet allegedly showed irregularities in evaluation. This triggered widespread protests and hunger strikes across Jharkhand, with demonstrators demanding an independent probe and structural reforms in the recruitment process.
The Supreme Court’s notice requires the Jharkhand government and the JPSC to respond to the petition. The case will now be taken up for further hearing, during which the court may decide whether to order a CBI inquiry or pass any other directions. The development is significant as it brings the controversy under judicial scrutiny, with the focus on ensuring a fair and transparent investigation into the allegations.
