MPPEB exam eligibility norm sparks protests; NSUI workers, cops clash

Several people, including policemen, were injured as police resorted to caning and lobbing teargas shells to disperse National Students’ Union of India (NSUI) activists demonstrating against the Madhya Pradesh Professional Examination Board’s (MPPEB) decision to allow candidates from other states to take the constable recruitment test in July 17.

Several people, including policemen, were injured as police resorted to caning and lobbing teargas shells to disperse National Students’ Union of India (NSUI) activists demonstrating against the Madhya Pradesh Professional Examination Board’s (MPPEB) decision to allow candidates from other states to take the constable recruitment test in July 17.

NSUI activists and policemen come face-to-face in Morena town on Tuesday. (HT photo)

The activists from the student wing of the Congress claimed that the PEB had “revised” its eligibility criteria to allow candidates from other states, particularly Uttar Pradesh, to take the constable’s recruitment test to fill 14,283 vacancies in the state police department.

According to police sources, additional district magistrate Vivek Singh and nearly half-a-dozen police personnel, including Kotwali town inspector Jitendra Nagaich, a sub-inspector and two constables, were injured when the agitators resorted to violence and attacked the administration and police personnel with stones.

Meanwhile, NSUI leaders claimed that several activists had sustained injuries in the cane charge.

On Tuesday, scores of Congress and NSUI workers took out a rally against the new eligibility rule.

They allegedly also tried to stop the traffic movement on the national highway. The demonstrators turned violent after police reached the spot and lobbed stones on them, following which police also lobbed teargas shells at the mob.

NSUI district president Gaurav Batham told HT: “This is injustice with candidates of Madhya Pradesh. It’s a recruitment process for MP police and candidates from the state should get preference in selection. No other state recruited candidates for police constable posts in their respective states, but MP government opened its door for candidates from other states. We will fight against this injustice.”

According to superintendent of police (SP) Vineet Khanna the Congress workers wanted to give a memorandum against the eligibility rule in the police recruitment process and court arrest, but when police arrested them, the mob turned violent.

“Some police personnel sustained injures in the incident. Police have registered a case against five people, including Gramin Kisan Congress district president Giriraj Dandotia and NSUI district president Gaurav Batham,” said Khanna.

Police have arrested Dandotiya, who was leading the protest and produced him before a court which sent him to jail in the evening.