Overview
- The MPSC aspirants' protest, which entered its fifth day on Monday, has drawn regional and national leaders to Pune and prompted NCP(SP) MLA Rohit Pawar to give the state a 48-hour ultimatum demanding chairman Vivek Bhimanwar’s resignation.
- The Maharashtra government announced a judicial inquiry to be completed within three months and terminated Mahendra Uttamrao Harpalkar’s deputation as MPSC secretary, but protesters say those steps do not satisfy calls for broader accountability.
- Political visits and speeches have intensified pressure on the state with promises of a large mobilisation in Pune or a march to Mumbai’s Mantralaya if the chairman is not removed, and Rahul Gandhi is reported likely to meet protesters on October 7 or 8.
- In Mumbai, tribal students who travelled to press delayed scholarship and ashram-school grievances were reported by Congress leaders to have been stopped and detained, while Mumbai Police said it detained people planning a march to Lok Bhawan and denied arrests at the Congress office.
- The dispute matters because the MPSC handles recruitment for many state jobs, protesters say alleged paper leaks and evaluation irregularities threaten tens of thousands of careers and that only a full audit and leadership change will restore trust.