MPSC aspirants suspend protest on October 2 after meeting CM Fadnavis; Secretary to be transferred

Latur: Protesters take part in a protest against alleged irregularities in examinations conducted by the Maharashtra Public Service Commission (MPSC) in Latur, Maharashtra | Photo credit: PTI

The MPSC aspirants on Wednesday (September 30, 2026) decided to temporarily suspend their October 2 agitation after a delegation met Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. The state government has reportedly secured action for several of their demands, including an inquiry into current and former officials of the Commission, immediate transfer of the MPSC secretary, continuation of offline examinations and large-scale recruitment for vacant government posts.

Student representative Nitin Andhale described the meeting as “positive” and said the delegation had unanimously decided to temporarily call off the agitation after the assurance.

Key demands included action against current and former chairmen and members of the Maharashtra Public Service Commission (MPSC) under Article 317 of the Constitution. According to details released after the meeting, the government pointed out that the MPSC chairman holds a constitutional office and cannot be removed by the state government or the governor. It said the judicial inquiry would be completed within three months and further action would be taken based on its findings.

Mr. Andhale said the Chief Minister also assured the delegation of an investigation involving the Chairman of the Commission, the Secretary and others in connection with the alleged paper leak issue.

The government has also assured the students that the MPSC secretary will be transferred immediately and the MPSC exams will continue to be conducted offline. No change in the examination regime would be made without discussions with student stakeholders, according to assurances given after the meeting.

On recruitment, the government said it is preparing to fill vacancies in a big way following a review of recruitment rules across ministries. According to details shared after the meeting, recruitment rules in several departments had not been revised since 1960, while around 30,000 to 40,000 promotions were pending. The revised rules are now ready for around 60% of the departments, the remaining departments are being worked on.

Students’ demand for increased vacancies for the Group C examination scheduled for January 3 was also accepted, with the government saying the increase in Group C seats would be at a “record” level.

The state is also planning to introduce a ‘single card’ system that will allow candidates to appear for multiple recruitment tests at a nominal cost. The proposed mechanism would also remove the need for candidates to repeatedly submit the same documents for different examinations.

Another important reassurance relates to advance recruitment planning. Vacancies expected over the next three years would be announced together, while recruitment for retirement vacancies would begin a year in advance. The government said that the complete program of this exercise will be ready within a month.

“The Chief Minister has assured us that the problems of the students will continue to be resolved through discussion in the coming period,” Mr. Andhale said. “With the agreement of all the students in the delegation, we have decided to suspend the agitation temporarily.”

The candidates planned to stage a protest on October 2 against their demands regarding MPSC recruitment, examination procedures and accountability within the Commission.

Published – 30 Sep 2026 21:38 IST