2026 Patna student protests (also referred to as the BPSC protests or Gardanibagh protests) are a series of demonstrations by the students in Patna, India, primarily concerning recruitment examinations conducted by the Bihar Public Service Commission and the other related bodies.
Background The 70th BPSC Combined Competitive Examination (CCE-prelims) was held on 13 December 2024. After complaints of irregularities and a possible paper leak at the Bapu Pariksha Parisar centre in Patna, the exam was cancelled at that centre and a re-test was held for the affected candidates. Protests demanding cancellation of the entire examination took place in late 2024 and early 2025.
Separately, aspirants had been waiting for the BPSC Teacher Recruitment Examination (TRE-4) notification for thousands of vacancies. But, after nearly 1.5 years delay, the BPSC issued the notification on 18 August 2026 for 32,388 posts, with applications scheduled to begin on 1 September 2026. However, the protests continued over the proposed two-stage exam (prelims and mains), negative marking, domicile rules, and other concerns.
Timeline of protests
Mid-to-late August 2026: On 18 August 2026, aspirants began a "Student Justice Satyagraha" at Gardanibagh, demanding the TRE-4 notification, a single-stage exam, removal of negative marking, greater transparency, and the overall cancellation of the 70th BPSC exam over alleged irregularities. The protests were led by All Bihar Students’ Union and the Chhatra-Yuva Sangharsh Morcha, joined the protest. 18–24 August 2026: The state government issued TRE-4 notification, but the sit-in continued. Opposition leader Tejashwi Yadav visited the Gardanibagh protest site. 25 August 2026: Protesters marched towards the Chief Minister of Bihar’s residence, breaking security barricades. Bihar Police responded with water cannons and lathi charges, detained some protesters, and reported injuries from stone-pelting.
Government response On 25 August 2026, the Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary announced monthly "Vidyarthi Sahyog Shivir" to address student grievances.
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