The students’ agitation demanding the cancellation of Bihar Public Service Commission (BPSC) civil services preliminary examination intensified on Friday as Jan Suraaj Party leader Prashant Kishor embarked on a fast unto death, while Purnea MP Rajesh Ranjan or Pappu Yadav and his supporters stopped trains and blocked roads at various places in the state.

The candidates who appeared in the exam are also agitating independently in Patna and other places, alleging paper leaks and other malpractices. Opposition Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and the Left parties have already expressed their support for them.

Kishor had given a 48-hour ultimatum to the state government to address the issue. When nothing happened he began his fast unto death at Gandhi Maidan in the state capital on Thursday evening.

Spending the night under the open sky and chilling weather amid cries of “re-exam”, the Jan Suraaj leader vowed to fight till death against the injustices done to the students of the state.

“This protest is not just against the examination, but corruption and turning the future of the students into a joke. More than half of the seats have already been sold. ₹50 lakh to ₹1.5 crore is being taken for the posts of sub-divisional magistrate and sub-divisional police officers,” Kishor said.

“Why are you playing with the careers of the students? You should announce: Bring money, get jobs. Why are you pretending to be a socialist and a follower of Mahatma Gandhi? Chief minister Nitish Kumar had once started a scheme — degree lao, naukri pao (bring degrees, get jobs),” Kishor told reporters.

The poll consultant-turned-politician asserted that the primary demand was a high-level probe into the corruption and irregularities in the 70th BPSC exam and conducting a reexamination for all the candidates.

The district administration hit back at Kishor by registering an FIR against him and his supporters for staging a demonstration without permission. It had previously registered an FIR against him and his party members on December 29 for inciting students to protest against the BPSC and march to the chief minister’s residence. It had resulted in a lathi-charge

On the other hand, Pappu Yadav chose direct action as a way of protest. He and his supporters blocked trains in Patna to demand re-examination.

“We are fighting against the paper leaks and the future of our students. This is a racket of ₹500 to ₹1,000 crore. BPSC chor hai (is a thief). Our supporters are stopping trains and blocking roads across Bihar. I met the governor and the chief secretary over the issue and have sought time from the chief minister,” Pappu said.

The Purnea MP, who won as an Independent after being denied a ticket by the Congress, said that he was planning to move the Supreme Court on the BPSC imbroglio and has talked to lawyer and former Union minister Kapil Sibal for it.

“I will also join as an ‘intervenor’ in the case in the Patna high court,” the parliamentarian added.

Pappu’s supporters blocked the Grand Trunk Road (National Highway 2) in Aurangabad district, leading to a traffic jam that extended for several kilometres. They also disrupted road and rail traffic in Purnea, Saharsa, Madhepura, Supaul, Kishanganj, Araria, Bhagalpur, Bhojpur and Rohtas districts.

Around 3.25 lakh candidates had appeared in the examination conducted by the BPSC at 911 centres across the state on December 13. It was marked by students’ unrest at the government-run Bapu Pariksha Parisar in Patna, which has a capacity of over 12,000 students. They alleged paper leak, foul play, lack of an adequate number of question papers, mismanagement and left the exam mid-way to protest.

The protest seeking cancellation and re-examination has been simmering since then. It has also seen lathi charges and the use of water cannons by the police to stop the marches of the agitating students in their bid to meet chief minister Nitish Kumar. Many of them were injured in the incidents, while several were arrested and FIRs were registered against them.

Meanwhile, the BPSC rejected the demands of cancellation of the entire examination on the grounds that no district official or student has provided any evidence of paper leak or irregularities. It is going to hold the re-examination for around 12,000 candidates, who were allotted the Bapu Pariksha Parisar as the centre, on Saturday. They will take the examination at 22 different centres in Patna.