From 7 am to 7 pm: How the march to Jharkhand Assembly unfolded

Express Photo by Shashwat/IE Hindi

Between 7 am and 8 am on Monday, people – mostly students and job aspirants – from different parts of Jharkhand started gathering at the old Vidhan Sabha in Ranchi. The plan was to march from the old Assembly building to the new one, where the monsoon session is currently underway.

By the time the march began, the crowd had swelled to over 10,000. Carrying placards, the Tricolour, and posters of freedom fighter Bhagat Singh, JMM founder Shibu Soren, and politician-activist Nirmal Mahato, the protesters began the journey to their intended destination.

After walking for around two kilometres, protesters reached the first set of barricades put up by the police. Slogans continued as protesters took a brief halt there, waiting for Devendra Mahto, one of the leaders of the current protest who has been on a hunger strike for days. Soon, he was brought there on a stretcher.

On the other side, a large security deployment was in place, including personnel from the Jharkhand police, the Jharkhand Jaguar, and the Rapid Action Force.

As protesters began trying to breach the first barricade, the police used a water cannon. But that did little to slow the crowd down. Some students appeared to enjoy the respite in the intense heat.

Rajiv Kumar, one of the protesters, remarked playfully: “The cannon seems Chinese-made. It had little impact on us.”

As protesters moved 200-300 metres ahead, they encountered the second barricade. For nearly an hour-and-a-half, the protesters stood there, raising slogans demanding a CBI probe and cancellation of the JSSC CGL examination, and chanting slogans targeting the JMM government and Chief Minister Hemant Soren.

The second barricade was eventually breached as well, and the protesters moved towards the third and final layer of barricading.

By then, the security presence had become heavier.

DSP Ajay Aryan said the police were not initially planning to use force, but the situation created by some who were intentionally provoking the crowd forced them to take action for security reasons. “As protesters tried to push through the barricade violently, we were forced to use lathi-charge,” he said, adding that they had been directed not to use force.

Around five to six students were injured, according to the protesters. Chandan Rajak, one of the organisers of the JPSC-JSSC Abhyarthi Nyay Manch, said he was injured in the lathi-charge. “People started running in the opposite direction,” he said.

Ranchi Superintendent of Police Paras Rana said police were merely retaliating. “Some protesters started pelting stones and pushed the barricades. Two constables were injured,” he said, adding that both required stitches.

After the lathi-charge, the crowd initially dispersed. But the confrontation did not end there.

After some time, protesters gathered near the third barricade and began pushing. As the confrontation between the police and students intensified, two rounds of tear gas were fired in the direction of the protesters. The crowd then began backing away.

“The first tear gas shell hit a two-wheeler. Two men who were sitting on it ran away, abandoning the vehicle,” said Shailendra Singh, who was there.

After some time, some protesters took a different route, moving for nearly a kilometre across open ground towards the Vidhan Sabha. Eventually, they reached the Assembly and began gathering there.

Since the monsoon session had ended, the MLAs had left the Assembly by then.

By evening, despite the confrontations and rain, several students remained near the Vidhan Sabha, continuing their protest. Some, however, said they had come only to participate in the march and had trains to catch back to their districts.

Around 7 pm, police again used lathi-charge to disperse the protesters from around the Assembly.