Protesting civil service aspirants in Bihar, who are seeking that the state’s Public Service Commission preliminary examination be conducted again on account of a suspected paper leak, said their meeting with Chief Secretary Amit Lal Meena on Monday did not yield any assurance that their demand would be met, The Indian Express reported.

On Sunday, the Bihar Police lathi-charged and used water cannons against demonstrators who were marching towards Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s house. The district authorities then invited a delegation of students to meet Meena on Monday.

“The chief secretary listened to our demands…but did not give any concrete assurance,” said a student leader who attended the meeting, according to The Indian Express.

The student said the group conveyed to Meena that it would be unfair to allow just 18,000 candidates to appear for the exam again. They also demanded that the first information reports filed against dozens of protesting students be withdrawn.

This was in reference to a retest that has been announced for candidates at one examination centre in Patna, where an official died of a heart attack.

Several candidates who appeared for the 70th Combined (Preliminary) Competitive Examination on December 13 have been protesting in Patna since December 18, alleging a question paper leak at one of the centres, according to The Hindu.

They have also alleged that CCTV cameras and jammers were not functioning at several examination centres and that question papers were distributed late at some.

Bihar Public Service Commission Chairman Parmar Ravi Manubhai has denied any question paper leaks and stated that the examination was conducted peacefully at 911 out of 912 centres.

So far, the commission has agreed to reschedule the exam only for candidates who appeared at the Patna centre.

Jan Suraaj Party chief Prashant Kishor, who has backed the students’ demands, led a protest on Sunday where he issued a 48-hour ultimatum to Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar to resolve the matter, failing which “students would resume their protests and there will be road blockade”.

“As of now, the future of our young students should be the top priority,” Kishor said. “We can play the game of politics later.”

Kishor also questioned the chief minister’s silence on the matter despite the fact that “candidates are protesting in biting cold, braving baton charges by the police and water cannons”.

On Sunday, the police registered a first information report against 21 persons, including Kishor, his party president Manoj Bharti and city-based tutor Ramanshu Mishra for organising a gathering of the candidates. Nearly 600 unidentified persons were also booked.

On Monday, Union minister Chirag Paswan urged the chief minister to intervene immediately. He also pressed for legal action against police officials who used excessive force against the students.

Paswan’s Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) and Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal (United) are both allies in the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance government at the Centre.

Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge also addressed the students’ protest on social media and accused the BJP of “spreading a web of paper leak mafia across the country which is ruining the future of the youth”.

Also read: Will stricter laws prevent paper leaks?