On August 10, as thousands of Jharkhand students marched in the capital, Ranchi, to gherao the State Assembly, Devendra Nath Mahto appeared amid the crowd, held aloft by his supporters, with a framed photograph of former Jharkhand Chief Minister Shibu Soren in one hand and the other raised towards the protesters. Flower petals were showered on him as cameras and mobile phones followed his movements.

For a man who has spent a decade organising student protests, the attention is new only in scale. Mr. Mahto, 33, has emerged as the most prominent face of the agitation over alleged irregularities in the 14th Jharkhand Public Service Commission (JPSC) preliminary and Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission (JSSC) examinations. He has been on an indefinite hunger strike since August 2, and was hospitalised after the August 10 march, entering the 15th day of his fast on Sunday (August 9, 2026).

The current agitation began days after the JPSC results were declared on July 2. A Jharkhand Loktantrik Krantikari Morcha (JLKM) leader, Mr. Mahto held a press conference on July 5, questioning the examination process, and submitted a set of demands to the Governor two days later. On July 8, protesters burnt an effigy of the JPSC chairman at Albert Ekka Chowk. After a meeting with Chief Minister Hemant Soren on July 20 yielded little, Mr. Mahto called for an indefinite sit-in at Bapu Vatika in Morabadi on July 25, later moving to Jaipal Singh Munda Stadium.

The protest has since grown, with gheraos, marches and a continued hunger strike of at least six other students, even after three rounds of talks with the government that yielded in cancellation of JPSC prelims and backlog exams of 2023-25. However, Mr. Mahto says the protest will not be called off until all exams conducted by the TDPL (a private exam conducting agency) are cancelled, including JSSC-CGL, and CBI investigation is recommended.

A stage of students

Owing to his political affiliations, a section of students, days into the protest, set up a different stage to keep their distance from “politics” and insisting that the stage remain independent of political parties. Mr. Mahto responded by refusing to take the stage again when politics became a point of discussion. His bed was moved below the stage, as he affirmed, “This is the stage of students and their issues, not of any political party.”

There was little in Mr. Mahto’s early life to suggest a political career. Son of Vishambar Mahto, a retired government teacher, he grew up in Rahe village in Ranchi district. His elder brother Dhaneshwar Mahto is a farmer. He was sent to Bundu, about 10 km from the village, for his matriculation and intermediate education. He later moved to Ranchi. He completed his B.Ed in Hazaribagh and postgraduate studies in Sanskrit and regional languages in Ranchi University till 2022.

“He wanted to be a teacher,” his brother said. “As any village child, he also wanted a simple government job to lead his life. That is why good education was prioritised.”

That changed in college. In 2016, Mr. Mahto began protesting over student scholarships. He subsequently became involved in demonstrations over recruitment rules, paper leaks and alleged irregularities in JPSC and JSSC exams. According to friends, he has led around a dozen agitations since 2015.

“He never spoke of becoming a political leader,” his brother said. “He spoke about raising his voice against injustice and for people’s rights. He says he does not care if anything happens to him.”

Friends describe him as an able orator, persistent and unusually tolerant. Chandan Kumar, a close friend and colleague from college since 2016, said Mahto could bring students together and lead their voices. Even though Chandan distances himself from politics, he supports Mr. Mahto for the student’s cause.

“He is always thinking about the welfare of Jharkhand’s students,” Mr. Kumar said. His political influences extend beyond the Mahtos. Friends say he began reading B.R. Ambedkar, Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr. in college and later developed an interest in Jharkhand leaders such as Nirmal Mahto and Vinod Bihari Mahto. He often quotes Vinod Bihari Mahto’s slogan, “Padho aur lado” — study and fight.

The protests also came at a personal cost. During his first major agitation against alleged irregularities in the sixth JPSC examination, his mother died of cancer in 2019. Since then, his visits to his house have become less frequent.

“Whatever work he picks he does it with utmost honesty and with dedication till he achieves the goal. His hard work inspires us so we support him,” his brother said, who had also appeared for competitive exams.

Turn to politics

Mr. Mahto has himself appeared for at least four JPSC preliminaries, JSSC-CGL and TGT examinations.

In 2022, he emerged alongside Jairam Mahto during protests over the inclusion of Bhojpuri, Magahi and Angika as regional languages in JSSC examinations. The following year, he became a prominent face of the agitation against the 60:40 employment policy, popularising the slogan “60-40 nay chalto”.

After protesters gheraoed the JSSC office in January 2024 over the alleged leakage of the JSSC-CGL examination paper, the examination was cancelled. But Mr. Mahto and other protesters were booked in a case that included charges related to rioting, unlawful assembly, attempt to murder and assault, according to Chandan.

“He transformed into a prominent chatra neta soon leading Jharkhand State Students’ Union, and after that it is hard to resist the mainstream politics,” a close associate said. “He wants to reach Parliament,” he said.

The JLKM, founded by activist-politician Jairam Mahto, became a political vehicle, with Devendra Nath Mahto increasingly involved in its activities. He contested the 2024 Lok Sabha election independently from Ranchi and finished third, securing more than 1.4 lakh votes and then the 2025 Vidhan Sabha election from his home constituency Silli on the JLKM ticket. He was arrested during the nomination period in 2024 election and filed his nomination from jail. He says the move into politics was a natural extension of his activism.

“Since 2015, we have been agitating and constantly raising our voice about JPSC, JSSC and other examination irregularities. During this time, there were BJP, JMM and Congress governments, but there was no solution to the students’ issues,” he said. “If the solution has to come from a political government, then why shouldn’t students themselves be part of that politics?”

The JLKM’s politics also includes the demand to extend Scheduled Tribe reservation to the Kudmi community, to which Mr. Mahto and Jairam Mahto belong. Yet, amid the current agitation, Mr. Mahto insists that his political identity must not eclipse the issue that brought him there.

“This is not my voice. This is the voice of lakhs of aspirants who have been affected, and their mothers who await a better future,” he said. “I knew this movement would grow bigger because this is a student movement.” For now, he says, he will remain on hunger strike. “The government has given us nothing in writing. How can I end my strike until the students are satisfied with the government’s response?” he asked.

Published – August 16, 2026 02:02 am IST