The local college and university campuses are getting hotter, lively and crowded with a notification of polling dates for the elections to different student unions.According to the notification issued by the Department of Higher Education, the elections to all student unions, including the universities, would be held in the first week of October.
With the publication of election notification, the students have resorted to different mechanisms, including one-to-one contact, organising parties in restaurants, distributing visiting cards and displaying colourful posters and banners welcoming the freshers in different strategic locations of their respective campuses to woo the voters in their favour.
As per the information available, the student union elections will be held in eight educational institutions, including Brahmapur University, Khallikote Autonomous College, Sashibhusan Rath Mahila Mahavidyalaya, City College, Binayak Acharya College, Khallikote Junior College, MKCG Medical College and Gopalpur NAC College in the current academic session.
However, a decision in regard to conduct of elections to the student union of Mahamayee Women’s College, to be held for the first time, is yet to be finalised,
sources said.
The major political parties reportedly have started the process to sponsor suitable candidates to contest in the ensuing elections, more particularly in Khallikote College Students’ Union and Brahmapur University Post Graduate Students’ Union. The eye of the political parties and the public are on these two premier student bodies.
According to an observer, the ensuing student’s union election should be conducted strictly in accordance with the guidelines of the lingdo Commission.
Though the guidelines clearly prohibits the display of posters and banners in the college and university walls and use of money power in the elections, these guidelines were clearly violated in most of the educational institutions in the last elections.
There is a public perception that some key functionaries who are responsible for smooth conduct of such elections in the academic institutions such as Vice-Chancellors, Principals, Chairpersons of PG Councils, and Advisors of the Students Union (who are basically senior faculty members of the institution concerned) should keep a strict vigil on the movement of anti-socials and political leaders to the college and university campuses including the activities of boarders in the student hostels during the period of election to make election smooth and incident- free.
However, there is an apprehension in the minds of some academicians that some anti-social elements, non-students at the behest of some vested groups might create disturbances in the university campus during the elections.
Notably, on the pretext of non-receipt of invitation by the hostel boarders to blood donation camp organised in Students Common Room and non-fulfillment of some demands, a group of students reportedly at the behest of some staff members of the university had closed the blood donation camp and the central library by force on September 13 last.
The situation in the campus had remained tense on that day. After the V-C Prof Deepak Behera assured the students to fulfil their demands, the situation became normal.
The constructive measures and reforms including initiation taken by the new VC to check corrupt practices remained undigested by some vested groups, sources said.