Students protesting the Jharkhand High Court’s stay on the cancellation of recruitment appointments tried to burn effigies of Chief Minister Hemant Soren and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in Ranchi on Friday, leading to clashes with police and Jharkhand Mukti Morcha workers, PTI reported.The protesters, under the banner of the Jharkhand Public Service Commission-Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission accused the state government of “deceiving” and “betraying” job aspirants.The Mahagathbandhan alliance, led by Soren’s Jharkhand Mukti Morcha and comprising the Congress, Rashtriya Janata Dal and the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation, is in power in Jharkhand.On Thursday, the High Court stayed the state government’s decision to cancel the 11th to 13th Jharkhand Public Service Commission Combined Civil Services examinations.The court also directed candidates selected through the examinations to resume their duties immediately.Following this, the Jharkhand Public Service Commission-Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission Reforms Manch had called on students to burn effigies of Soren across all 24 districts of Jharkhand, ANI reported.Tension rose in Ranchi when students moved forward with the effigies and police seized them, the news agency reported.Lalpur police station officer-in-charge Rupesh Kumar Singh said the students had changed the designated route for the march and gone towards the Jharkhand Public Service Commission office, bringing traffic to a halt, The New Indian Express reported.On the other hand, the protesters alleged that the police and Jharkhand Mukti Morcha workers tried to prevent them from holding a peaceful demonstration, PTI reported.They also alleged that Jharkhand Mukti Morcha workers confronted the protesters and assaulted female protesters during the clashes.Police and administrative officials intervened as the two groups came face-to-face at Albert Ekka Chowk. The march resumed after the situation was brought under control, The New Indian Express reported.Similar clashes were reported in Hazaribag and Giridih, where Jharkhand Mukti Morcha workers confronted students who were trying to burn effigies of Soren, ANI reported.The protests followed a series of orders by the Jharkhand High Court concerning the cancellation of recruitment examinations and appointments.On Thursday, besides staying the state government’s notification cancelling the 11th and 13th Jharkhand Public Service Commission Civil Services examinations, the court also stayed the cancellation of food safety officer appointments.On Friday, the court stayed notifications cancelling the appointments of Child Development Project Officers and candidates recruited through the Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission Combined Graduate Level examination.Student leaders accused the state government of failing to effectively defend its decisions before the high court.The protesters had earlier called off their agitation after the Jharkhand government cancelled 44 examinations conducted since 2014 by the Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission and the Jharkhand Public Service Commission through testing firm TSR Data Processing Private Limited.Later, candidates who had cleared some of the examinations approached the Jharkhand High Court, challenging the state government’s decision.Edited by Neerad Pandharipande.