True: Bihar Police: No government jobs for those found staging protests, blocking roads.

By: Sunil Kumar
February 5 2021

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The order states that the government will not hire those with a criminal record, and should be prepared for serious repercussions. The government of Bihar issued a directive on January 30, 2021, stating that any individual from the state of Bihar participating in demonstrations that may turn violent will lose their eligibility to secure a government job or a government contract. The directive further stated that actions would be taken if an individual is involved in a criminal act and is named in a police charge sheet for picketing, road blocking, or protesting. According to the directive, individuals charged will also be ineligible to apply for a state-owned liquor store. A conduct certificate issued by the police is required for an individual to apply for a government job, weapon license, etc. If an applicant's name was included in any charge-sheet related to violence, the application would be rejected. The Director-General of Bihar Police, S K Singhal, reportedly approved the new directive and sent it to the State Home Department and other top police officials in the state. Furthermore, the Financial express quoted Bihar's ADG saying that "if a person has been involved in a criminal activity and there is a record of it, the police would mark it in their character verification report. Based on it, employers, be it government, private or semi-government, can decide as per their discretion and policy if they want to hire them.” This directive issued by the Government of Bihar has drawn flak from various politicians and political parties alike. Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Tejashwi Yadav criticized the order and accused Chief Minister Nitish Kumar of acting like a "dictator," according to Scroll. “In a challenge to Hitler and Mussolini, Nitish Kumar says if someone uses his democratic right against government by staging dharna-protest, he will not get a government job, which means neither will jobs be given, nor will protest be allowed,” Yadav wrote on Twitter, along with attaching a copy of the order. “How this hapless chief minister with 40 seats is frightened!”