Pune, 1st October 2026: The protest scheduled for October 2 in against the functioning of the Maharashtra Public Service Commission (MPSC) has been temporarily suspended after Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis assured students that most of their demands would be addressed.
During a meeting with MPSC student representatives at Mantralaya in Mumbai on Wednesday, Fadnavis promised a judicial inquiry into the commission's chairman, the transfer of its secretary and several measures to improve the recruitment process.
The student delegation had sought action over alleged irregularities in the commission's functioning, along with the chairman's resignation, recruitment for 70,000 vacant posts and offline examinations.
The meeting was also attended by Pune Police Commissioner Amitesh Kumar and Deputy Commissioner of Police Prashant Amritkar as special invitees, along with student representatives Akshay Jain, Pramod Patil, Rahul Dambale, Akshay Kamble and Bhausaheb Ajabe.
The Chief Minister assured the delegation that a retired judge would conduct an inquiry into the MPSC chairman's functioning within three months. Further action would be considered based on the inquiry's findings. The government also assured students that the commission's secretary would be transferred immediately.
The government further agreed to conduct all MPSC examinations offline. Any future changes to the examination pattern will be made only after discussions with student representatives, addressing one of the major concerns raised by aspirants.
The state government has also promised to recruit candidates for approximately 30,000 vacant posts across various government departments. A comprehensive recruitment calendar is expected to be announced within a month.
Additionally, the government will publish consolidated information about vacancies expected over the next three years. To avoid recruitment delays, the process for filling posts likely to fall vacant due to retirement will begin a year in advance.
To reduce the financial burden on candidates, the government has agreed to introduce a system similar to Rajasthan's, allowing aspirants to appear for all examinations throughout the year using a single card costing ₹100. The proposed system is intended to make examination applications more affordable and accessible.
Following the assurances, student representatives announced that they would temporarily suspend the October 2 Satyagraha protest in Pune. They said the decision was taken collectively after the meeting and expressed hope that the government would implement the promised measures within the stipulated time.
Student representative Nitin Andhale said the meeting with the Chief Minister was positive and that the government had agreed to address several major demands, including an inquiry into the paper leak issue, recruitment for 70,000 posts, offline examinations, the transfer of the MPSC secretary and a single examination card at a nominal fee.
He added that the delegation had agreed to suspend the protest temporarily after receiving assurances that students' concerns would continue to be addressed through discussions.