India, Oct. 5 -- A day after Congress leader Rahul Gandhi backed the agitation by Maharashtra Public Service Commission (MPSC) aspirants, NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar on Sunday urged chief minister Devendra Fadnavis to immediately open a dialogue with the protesters. "There is unrest among aspirants in Pune, Mumbai and other parts of the state," he told reporters on Sunday. "The state government needs to engage with the aspirants to end the impasse."

The MPSC has been under a cloud, with candidates staging a protest in Pune over repeated paper leaks, and opposition parties targeting the Mahayuti government for this. On Sunday evening, an opposition leader, the Sena (UBT)'s Sanjay Raut, joined the protesters at the agitation site near S M ...