Pune, Sept. 8 -- A large number of Maharashtra Public Service Commission (MPSC) aspirants gathered at the Pune district collectorate on Monday, demanding resignation of the commission's chairperson, and to protest against alleged question paper leaks and irregularities in examinations. The agitation caused heavy traffic congestion in the surrounding areas. The protest march "Aakrosh Morcha" began from Omkareshwar Temple Chowk and culminated at the district collectorate, where hundreds of aspirants, teachers, exam mentors and political leaders continued their agitation, demanding greater transparency in the functioning of MPSC and accountability over alleged irregularities in recruitment examinations. NCP (SP) leader Supriya Sule, party MLA Rohit Pawar, Congress MLA Vishwajit Kadam, former MLA Mohan Joshi and Youth Congress state president Shivraj More joined the agitation. "This is not a political agitation but a protest by MPSC aspirants," Pawar told reporters, urging the state government to fulfil their demands. Sule said the government should immediately initiate a dialogue with the students. Among their key demands, the protesters sought the resignation of the MPSC chairman and secretary and the appointment of officers with a "clean image" to the two positions. The protestors demanded that the commission clarify within eight days the objections raised over the Drug Inspector (Group-B) examination conducted in March and initiate inquiry into the alleged irregularities. They sought an investigation into alleged mistakes in the evaluation of descriptive answer papers for the 2025 State Services Main and the Agricultural Services exams. The protesters demanded that the preliminary inquiry report submitted by the Mumbai Crime Branch to MPSC in connection with the alleged drug Inspector examination paper leak be made public. The aspirants sought forensic audit of examinations conducted during the tenure of arrested MPSC under-secretary Abhijit Lendwe. They demanded an inquiry into the service records and promotion process of Lendwe and two other accused assistant section officers, Vishweshwar Dattatraya Nakate and Gopal Bhattu Marathe. Other demands included scrutiny of the call detail records of candidates allegedly selected through contacts of the accused officials and an investigation into the possible role of middlemen or agents. They demanded that the Group-C preliminary examination for clerks and typists, scheduled for October 25, be conducted with transparency. The revival of the stenographer post was also among their demands. Exam mentor and protest coordinator Sachin Dhawale said teachers and students had collected around 200 pages of documents relating to alleged irregularities and submitted them to the government. He said 12 major demands had been placed before the government. Student-protestor Sagar Bondre said, "We exposed the paper leak issue, and we will not stop until the chairman resigns." Student Khushi Jadhav highlighted the difficulties faced by aspirants who move to Pune from other parts of the state. "Students, particularly women who come to Pune to prepare for competitive exams, face social and family pressure, including pressure to marry, as well as safety concerns. After years of preparation, reports of paper leaks and other irregularities add to their mental stress," she said. The protest comes amid mounting pressure on MPSC following the alleged drug inspector examination paper leak. Mumbai police have arrested seven people, including a woman candidate who secured seventh rank in the exam, in connection with the case. Meanwhile, the state government has formed a high-level committee to suggest reforms in the examination process....