Govt job aspirants stage protests in Dharwad, demand filling of vacant posts

Protests by job aspirants intensified in Dharwad on Tuesday, with demonstrators demanding that vacant government posts be filled at the earliest. Speaking to reporters, Leader of Opposition in the Karnataka Assembly R Ashoka, who reached Dharwad and supported the agitation, said there are over 2.5 lakh posts in the state government lying vacant.

Protests by job aspirants intensified in Dharwad on Tuesday, with demonstrators demanding that vacant government posts be filled at the earliest. A large number of aspirants gathered at the site, raising slogans and expressing anger over delays in recruitment. They burnt the effigy of Karnataka ministers. As tensions escalated and the situation turned tense, police were deployed in the area to maintain law and order. Later, police took several protesting aspirants into custody after the demonstration reportedly went out of control. ''The situation escalated and preventive action was taken to bring it under control,'' a senior police officer said. A protester said, until the vacant posts are filled, the protest will not stop. Another protester said, if their demands are not met, students will lay siege to the Vidhana Soudha. ''We don't want to create a situation like Nepal and Bangladesh, but the government should take note of our demands,'' he said. Among those detained was All Karnataka State Sttudents' Association (AKSSA) president R Kanthakumar. He was taken into custody at the protest site along with other demonstrators. The police blamed him for the protest spiralling out of control. The opposition BJP too extended support to the protests. Speaking to reporters, Leader of Opposition in the Karnataka Assembly R Ashoka, who reached Dharwad and supported the agitation, said there are over 2.5 lakh posts in the state government lying vacant. ''It's been more than six months since the finance department issued orders to fill 65,000 posts, but not even a single interview call was given. This is anti-youth government,'' he said. Reacting to the BJP's support to the agitation, Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar said, ''Why did the BJP did not fill the vacancies. We are doing it. Realising that there is problem related to employment, we are giving Rs 3,000 to them (as Yuva Nidhi guarantee to graduate unemployed youths). Now we are inviting applications.'' Shivakumar said details regarding filling posts in his department have been shared with the Karnataka Public Service Commission (KPSC).

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