HYDERABAD: Student union elections have returned to the spotlight at universities across India, with students at Aligarh Muslim University (AMU), Jamia Millia Islamia and Maulana Azad National Urdu University (MANUU) demanding the restoration of elected representative bodies.
While some universities continue to hold regular elections, others have gone years without polls. In several institutions, elected unions have been replaced by nominated councils or departmental associations. The history of these restrictions differs across universities and states.
At AMU, students began protesting on September 21, demanding the restoration of elections that had not been held since 2018. The agitation intensified after postgraduate student Yasir Fahad went on an indefinite hunger strike. Following negotiations, the university announced that elections would be held on November 5, 2026. The students subsequently called off their protest.
At Jamia Millia Islamia in Delhi, the elected students’ union has remained defunct since 2006. Students began an indefinite hunger strike on October 12, demanding the restoration of the union and a clear election schedule.
On October 26, the administration agreed to hold elections within 15 days of approval of the union’s constitution. It also revoked protest-related suspension and show-cause notices and announced an inquiry into the conduct of security personnel. Some protesters questioned the agreement because it did not set a deadline for approving the constitution. They also objected to a condition requiring an apology for statements and social media posts directed at the administration.
News reports on October 27 said a section of the hunger-strikers had rejected the administration’s order, saying it set no firm timeline for the union’s restoration. Delhi Police imposed prohibitory orders under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita outside the campus as the agitation entered its third week, with gates sealed and scuffles reported between protesters and security personnel. More than 30 students were said to have been detained through the day.
In Hyderabad, students at MANUU protested in January 2026 over the absence of union elections for more than 18 months. The agitation ended after the administration gave written assurances that it would explore holding elections in the 2026–27 academic session following the admission process.
The absence of student union elections extends beyond these three institutions. Banaras Hindu University has not held student union elections for nearly three decades, while Allahabad University’s last elections were held in 2018. Jamia’s elected union has been defunct since 2006, and AMU’s polls remained suspended from 2018.
Other institutions, including Jawaharlal Nehru University and Delhi University, continue to hold elections. The University of Hyderabad also has an elected student union. India does not have a blanket nationwide ban on student union elections. Policies and practices vary across universities and states.
Uttar Pradesh, where BHU and AMU are both located, briefly outlawed student union elections at its state universities in 2007 under the government of then chief minister Mayawati, citing concerns over campus violence; the ban was lifted the following year.
At Jamia, the university dissolved its elected union in March 2006 following incidents involving violence and disruption to academic activities. The decision followed a confrontation between student union leaders and university officials. The university subsequently relied on departmental subject associations instead of a central elected body.
Concerns about the conduct of student elections led to intervention at the national level. In 2005, the Supreme Court sought recommendations on regulating campus polls. The Union government subsequently constituted a committee chaired by former Chief Election Commissioner J. M. Lyngdoh.
The committee submitted its recommendations in 2006. The Supreme Court accepted them and directed universities and colleges to implement the guidelines. These covered candidate eligibility and campaign expenditure. They also addressed election schedules and the participation of outsiders.
The recommendations established rules for conducting student elections. They did not impose a nationwide ban on student unions.
Karnataka banned student union elections across colleges and universities in 1989 amid concerns over clashes and political interference. Disruption to academic activities was also cited in discussions surrounding the restrictions. Many institutions continued without elected unions for decades.
In September 2026, the Karnataka Cabinet approved the reintroduction of student elections from the 2026–27 academic year. Under the proposed system, elections will not be compulsory. Political parties and student organisations will also be barred from contesting under their banners.
The decision marks a change in the state’s policy after decades of restrictions. The final implementation details will determine how the proposed system operates across institutions.
Tamil Nadu has seen a decline in student union elections following incidents of campus violence and administrative restrictions. At Chennai’s Presidency College, elections were stopped in 2015 after clashes between student groups. Pachaiyappa’s College had dissolved its student union in 1996 following a dispute that reportedly escalated into a plot to attack the principal. Over time, elections became uncommon across many government and aided colleges in the state. However, the restrictions largely stemmed from decisions by individual institutions and reported informal directives rather than a clearly documented statewide legal ban. The issue has resurfaced amid calls to restore elected student representation on campuses.
Student activism in India grew alongside the freedom movement, with students participating in anti colonial protests and political campaigns. The All India Students’ Federation (AISF), formed on August 12, 1936, in Lucknow, gave student activism a national organisational platform. After Independence, campuses became spaces for ideological contest between left-wing and right-wing student groups, with debates over nationalism, socialism, caste and social justice shaping student politics.
Political parties increasingly built student organisations to mobilise young people and expand their influence on campuses. Groups such as the Students’ Federation of India (SFI), affiliated with the Communist movement, and the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), associated with the RSS, became prominent players in university politics.
Student union elections became an important arena for competing political ideologies and party influence on campuses. At Delhi University, the Delhi University Students’ Union (DUSU) emerged as a prominent platform for political mobilisation. Former DUSU leaders such as Arun Jaitley, Vijay Goel, Ajay Maken and Rekha Gupta, who is now Delhi’s chief minister, later entered mainstream politics. Jaitley, who led the DUSU in 1974, was also convener of the students’ and youth committee of Jayaprakash Narayan’s movement against the Emergency, and was arrested under the Maintenance of Internal Security Act (MISA) in June 1975. Across Indian universities, student elections have connected campus issues with wider debates over ideology and public policy, while providing students with a platform to organise, demand representation and hold university administrations accountable.