Not long ago, the Parumala Devaswam Board College in Kerala took up arms in campus violence. Three ABVP leaders jumped into the river to get away from the violent rival mob. But the violent election enemies stoned them till they drowned to death. Similarly in August 2006, Ujjain Professor HS Sabharwal, head of the college’s Political Science department, who spoke in favour of cancellation, was ferociously beaten up to death in minutes by militant students. This heartrending news remained current for long because mainstream political parties with horribly wicked leaders were keen that easy-to-persuade students became their followers only to grab votes during general elections. Most campuses in India had by then become terrible dens of politicians. Studies naturally had taken the back seat. The Supreme Court took notice and constituted a seven-member committee headed by former Chief Election Commissioner lyngdoh to go deep into the issue and make recommendations for leaving campuses clean of political filth and conspiracy. By the end of 2006, lyngdoh finished his job, but as usual, the successive Governments have done precious little to impose the recommendations to turn campuses clean.
Student political movements usually distract bright students from their academic pursuits. They lose precious years chasing romantic dreams of changing the world, only to realise much later that they have lost precious years of their life.
The Odisha Government has just declared campus elections without least regard for the lyngdoh formula. Once a reputedly peaceful campus has now turned as violent and bad as Kerala or Ujjain of 2006.
But interestingly, a few States have promoted sanity in campuses with saintly authorities guiding students righteously. A new generation of college students in Tamil Nadu has taken up the cause of the Tamils of Sri lanka. “Self-assured, articulate and well-informed, they could rattle ill-informed TV anchors without batting an eyelid and confidently talk of the Geneva Convention and Article 370 of the Indian Constitution. Their understanding of politics too is complex. For instance, they are deeply aware of the politics that the media has played and continues to play. A large flex banner which was used in one of the demonstrations read, “Genocide of Tamils in Sri lanka. The Official Media Partner: The Hindu”. Indeed, a brilliant summary of the newspaper’s role in defending the Mahinda Rajapaksa’s genocidal regime.
The “apolitical” student movements in Delhi and Tamil Nadu, which in reality are deeply political, should be eye-openers for students.
After emerging victorious after five years, Panjab University Students’ Union members highlighted that the results signalled an end to the culture of mainstream political parties backing student bodies on the campus. Students have given a mandate against the student wings of political parties — an end to the VIP culture, which these student organisations had brought to the campus earlier. These organisations were motivated by political agenda and not the welfare of students. The students no longer want any student wings of political parties to rule on campus. The culture of bringing mainstream political leaders to make fake promises has ended; and also the culture of luring students with trips, movies and booze will not bring votes for them anymore.
Their primary objective is to establish a neat and clean campus, proper hygiene in hostels and improving the condition of food as a top priority. Better salary packages for students during placements are also on the agenda. It is a self-financed course with a fee of Rs1.5 lakh per semester and the maximum package they get during placement is Rs3.50 lakh, which is pittance.
Students have shown that they are against student organisations affiliated with political parties. They no longer want to elect student leaders who do not have any vision and policy for student welfare. The main priority will be upgradation of the syllabus in the Panjab University as it is one of the reasons we do not have good placement packages. The university should be a place where education can be affordable to all.
Key features of the lyngdoh Committee recommendations:
q Entire process of elections, commencing from the date of filing of nomination papers to the date of declaration of results, including the campaign period, should not exceed 10 days.
q Elections be held every year between 6 to 8 weeks from the date of commencement of the academic session. *Eligibility Criteria -Under graduate students between the ages of 17 and 22 can contest but this age be appropriately relaxed in case of professional colleges, where courses often range between 4 to 5 years.
q For Post Graduate students the maximum age limit would be 24-25 years. Research students can contest until 28 years of age.
q The candidate should have attained the minimum attendance percentage of 75 per cent.
q Candidates shall have one opportunity to contest for the post of office bearer, and two opportunities to contest for the post of an executive member.
q The candidate shall not have any criminal antecedents or misdemeanor; and shall not have been subject to any disciplinary action by the University authorities.
q The candidate must be a regular, full time student of the college / university and should not be a distance/proximate education student.
That is to say that all eligible candidates must be enrolled in a full course duration of at least one year.
q Election Expenditure and Financial Accountability
Maximum permitted expenditure per candidate shall be Rs5000/-
q Each candidate shall, within two weeks of the declaration of the result, submit completely audited accounts to the college/university authorities. The college/university shall publish such audited accounts, within 2 days of the submission of such accounts, through a suitable medium so that any member of the student body may freely examine the same.
q The election of the candidate would be nullified in the event of any noncompliance or in the event of any excessive expenditure.
q To prevent the inflow of funds from political parties into the student election process, the candidates are specially barred from utilizing funds from any other sources than voluntary contributions from the student body.
q During the election period the candidates may hold processions and / or public meetings, provided that such processions and / or public meetings do not, in any manner, disturb the classes and other academic and co curricular activities of the college / university.
q Further, such procession / public meeting may not be held without the prior written permission of the college / university authority.
q The use of loudspeakers, vehicles and animals for the purpose of canvassing shall be prohibited.
q On the day of polling, student organizations and candidates shall (i) co-operate with the officers on election duty to ensure peaceful and orderly polling and complete freedom to the voters to exercise their franchise without being subjected to any annoyance or obstruction;
(ii) not serve or distribute any eatables, or other solid and liquid consumables, except water on polling day;
(iii) not hand out any propaganda on the polling day.
q Excepting the voters, no one without a valid pass / letter of authority from the election commission or from the college / university authorities shall enter the polling booths.
q The election commission / college/ university authorities shall appoint impartial observers. In the case of deemed universities and self-financed institutions, government servants may be appointed as observers. If the candidates have any specific complaint or problem regarding the conduct of the elections they may bring the same to the notice of the observer. Observers shall also be appointed to oversee the process of nomination of students in institutions that are following the nomination model of student representation.
q All candidates shall be jointly responsible for ensuring the cleaning up of the polling area within 48 hours of the conclusion of polling.
q Any contravention of any of the above recommendations may make the candidate liable to be stripped of his candidature, or his elected post, as the case may be. The election commission / college / university authorities may also take appropriate disciplinary action against such a violator.
q In addition to the above-mentioned code of conduct, it is also recommended that certain provisions of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (Section 153A and Chapter IXA - “Offences Relating to Election”), may also be made applicable to student elections.
Most notably, the National Green Tribunal ordered on July 18, 2016 that campus polls must be conducted without excessive wastage of paper (essentially, posters and pamphlets). The NGT order declared, “Only allow candidates contesting elections or their pre-notified student agents to utilise handmade posters at certain notified places, not exceeding two on each campus.”
Hopefully, the Odisha Government will take adequate care to ensure political parties leave the campuses alone unlike the local self-government bodies that became dangerously degenerate years ago due to mainstream politicisation.