Rahul Gandhi slams Bihar govt for 'lathi-charge' on BPSC aspirants, calls it shameful

New Delhi: Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, on Thursday alleged that the NDA-led government in Bihar resorted to a 'lathi-charge' on Bihar Public Service Commission (BPSC) aspirants to "hide its failures."
The Congress MP called the action taken against the protesting aspirants "extremely shameful."
In a post on X, Rahul Gandhi likened the incident to the example of 'Eklavya's thumb,' stating that the youth's future is being cut off in the same way by "leaking the papers."
"I had said in Parliament that in the same way that Eklavya's thumb was cut off, in the same way the thumbs of the youth are cut off by leaking the papers. The latest example of this is Bihar. BPSC candidates are raising their voice against the paper leak and demanding cancellation of the exam. But to hide its failure, the NDA government is instead resorting to lathi-charge on the students," Rahul Gandhi wrote.
"This is extremely shameful and reprehensible. Playing with the future of students will not be tolerated. We are with them and will fight to get them justice," he added.
https://x.com/RahulGandhi/status/1872204866686513607c
He also attached a video to his post showing police using 'lathis' on students as they ran in disarray.
The BPSC aspirants had gathered to "gherao" the commission's office in Patna and demanded the cancellation of the examination. Aspirants have been protesting since December 13 over alleged irregularities in an exam conducted by the authority.
The candidates claimed that the question paper had been leaked, and there were delays in distributing the papers.
Several candidates reported receiving the question paper nearly an hour late, while others said their answer sheets were torn, raising concerns of a possible leak.
Earlier in the day, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) Chief Lalu Prasad said that the police should not have used a "lathi charge" on the protesting students, calling the action wrong.
"They shouldn't have done this. It's wrong...," Lalu said.
However, police authorities issued a clarification, claiming they used "mild force" and denied any injuries to the protesting aspirants.