Prashant Kishor had been protesting against the misconduct of the Bihar Public Service Commission (BPSC) exam and demanding its cancellation.
Prashant Kishor, the founder of Jan Suraaj, was arrested early Monday morning after having staged a fast-unto-death at Gandhi Maidan in Patna. Kishor had been protesting against the misconduct of the Bihar Public Service Commission (BPSC) exam and demanding its cancellation.
A senior official confirmed the arrest to PTI, stating that police had removed Kishor and his supporters from the protest site. According to Prashant Kishor's supporters, the police took him to Patna AIIMS for a medical examination following the arrest.
“Yes, Kishor and his supporters sitting on dharna at Gandhi Maidan were arrested by the police on Monday morning. They will now be produced before a court,” District Magistrate Chandrashekhar Singh confirmed the arrest to PTI.
DM Singh said that the protest was “illegal” as it took place near a restricted area, adding that the sit-in was being held near the Mahatma Gandhi statue at Gandhi Maidan, a site where protests are prohibited.
"Despite repeated requests by the officials, they did not leave the place. They had also been served a notice by the district administration to shift their dharna to Gardani Bagh, the dedicated place for holding protests," the DM said.
Regarding allegations of manhandling, the DM said, "Kishor was not manhandled by security personnel. Police only removed supporters who tried to prevent his arrest."
The poll strategist-turned-politician was taken to Patna AIIMS for a medical check-up immediately after his arrest. "Initially, he did not allow officials to get his medical examination done at AIIMS. Finally, he agreed and his check-up was done at a medical facility near Fatuha", the official told PTI.
The district administration stated that the "health condition of Kishor is absolutely fine".
Kishor's supporters tried to block the road outside the facility when he was being taken out from AIIMS in an ambulance. A senior police official said that mild force was used to disperse the supporters.
Kishor had begun his fast on January 2 in support of civil service aspirants who had been protesting the BPSC exam held on December 13, 2023. The exam came under scrutiny after allegations of a question paper leak, leading to calls for its cancellation. In response, the BPSC ordered a retest for a select group of candidates.
The retest, which took place on January 4 at 22 centres in Patna, saw participation from around 5,943 candidates out of the 12,012 who had downloaded their admit cards. The BPSC reported that the retest was conducted peacefully, with no reports of misconduct or malpractices.
The controversy erupted after numerous candidates alleged that the question paper for the December 13 exam had been leaked, prompting widespread protests. In response, the BPSC rejected the allegations, labelling them as part of a “conspiracy” to discredit the exam process. However, to quell the unrest, the commission ordered a re-examination for over 10,000 candidates who were assigned to a single exam centre in Patna, Bapu Pariksha Parisar, where the exam was disrupted.