Lucknow students, backed by the CJP, are protesting against lack of transparency and irregularities in recruitment

Civil Service students and aspirants gathered on June 12, 2026 at Eco Garden, Lucknow. Photo credit: ANI

Students and government job aspirants gathered at Eco Garden in Lucknow on Friday to protest against alleged widespread irregularities in the recruitment exams and demanded that the government address their grievances.

Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke also joined the protest, demanding accountability. “I am not afraid to ask the government real questions. The youth of our country is not afraid to ask the government real questions. We will continue the movement, we will succeed,” Dipke said.

Call for a high-level inquiry

“There have been irregularities, mismanagement at exam centers and lack of transparency in recruitment processes at various levels of competitive exams, including Lekhpal (municipal officer) and UP sub-inspector,” said Omkar Singh, one of the aspirants at the protest site. “We demand a thorough and impartial investigation into all allegations. A high-level independent inquiry into the alleged irregularities in the main investigation into Lekhpal is essential as videos of misconduct have gone viral,” he added.

“Our demands include re-conduct of the Lekhpal main exam and speedy release of detailed scorecard for the UP sub-inspector exam. The government has not conducted numerous recruitment and aptitude tests and we insist that the recruitment exam calendar be fully followed,” Mr Singh said.

Complaint rectification is required

The students also accused the local authorities in Prayagraj, a major coaching center in Uttar Pradesh, of closing down three coaching centers on the pretext of non-compliance with building safety regulations. In fact, the students said, the authorities suspect these centers of supporting the youth movement.

The protesters in Lucknow also demanded that the government set up a permanent dialogue and grievance redressal mechanism to address the issues faced by candidates preparing for the entrance exams. On May 29, hundreds of these aspirants gathered in the streets of Prayagraj for a similar protest.

Authoritarian attitude

The opposition Congress party criticized the BJP-led Uttar Pradesh government for failing to initiate a dialogue with the protesting students. “In a healthy democracy, the government initiates a dialogue with the stakeholders to understand their grievances and concerns,” said Congress National Secretary Shahnawaz Alam.

“In the past, issues were also raised by the student community which were discussed in a democratic manner. But the present government is acting in an authoritarian manner. We have seen the level of employment crisis in UP this week when more than 20,00,000 aspirants took the constable exam for around 32,000 seats. We demand that the government address our grievances as soon as possible,” he added.

Published – 12 Jun 2026 23:29 IST