The MPSC protest in Pune entered its sixth day on October 6, with Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar) MLA Rohit Pawar giving the Maharashtra government 48 hours to respond to candidates’ demands, including the removal of Maharashtra Public Service Commission chairman Vivek Bhimanwar.
Pawar said the government’s failure to act could lead to more than 100,000 students taking to Pune’s streets. According to his warning, the protesters could either call for a complete shutdown of Pune or march to the state secretariat in Mumbai. The decision, he said, would ultimately be taken by the candidates and their parents.
The agitation is being led by candidates preparing for MPSC examinations. Their demands follow concerns over a recent paper leak and alleged lack of transparency in the commission’s functioning. Pawar has called for the MPSC chairman’s immediate resignation and a comprehensive audit of the commission’s recruitment processes.
Pawar has been present with the candidates since the first day of the protest, according to the report. He also said Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was expected to meet the protesting candidates in Pune on October 7 or 8. Pawar estimated that around 100,000 students could gather in the city during the visit, although the report does not establish whether that number has been independently confirmed.
The proposed actions could affect movement through Pune if a citywide shutdown is called. A march to Mumbai would also raise operational and security requirements for authorities along the route and around the state government’s administrative headquarters. No official traffic, police or district administration plan for either eventuality was cited in the report.
The dispute has also prompted a response from Maharashtra minister and BJP leader Nitesh Rane. Rane appealed to Pawar not to use the students for political gain and said the issue concerned the future of lakhs of candidates. He urged the leaders to work together and said the matter should be addressed constructively rather than turning the students into participants in a political confrontation.
Rane said the protest could continue, but students should not be held hostage. He also suggested that Pawar could one day sit with him in the state cabinet, a remark Pawar rejected as an attempt to divert attention from the candidates’ concerns.
Pawar responded that the minister should sit with the students and resolve their grievances rather than discuss a possible cabinet role. He said the government should demonstrate the will to address the administration’s growing unpopularity and repeated his call for action on the MPSC’s recruitment process.
The immediate deadline set by Pawar is the government’s response within 48 hours. The possible visit by Rahul Gandhi on October 7 or 8 and the candidates’ decision on a Pune shutdown or march to Mumbai are the next developments identified in the report.
