Elections for the students’ union in the Ravenshaw University will not be held this year. The university authorities took this decision on Friday after the campus witnessed unruly scenes.
Anticipating that a popular student belonging to the Biju Chhatra Janata Dal will not be allowed to contest in next month’s students’ union elections, a group of his supporters on Friday went on a rampage inside the campus forcing the authorities to cancel the polls. “The university campus is now highly surcharged due to students’ unrest and therefore, we have decided not hold the students’ union elections this year,” said university VC Prof BC Tripathy on Friday.
The authorities earlier this week had postponed the electioneering inside the campus due to continuous students’ unrest leading to dharanas, demonstrations and agitations. The authorities had, however, indicated that the elections shall be allowed to happen only if “normalcy” returned to the campus.
But when the University Staff Council on Friday was getting ready to review the situation for October 8 elections, rumors spread that presidential candidate Nigamanada Swain, who was last year fined by the authorities for certain unlawful activity, would not be allowed to contest in this year’s elections.
Soon, a group of agitated students went on a rampage and all hell broke loose as tyres were burnt in the corridors, fans were pulled down and furniture and flower vases went flying as missiles. Finding the situation going out of hand, the authorities handed over the campus to police. According to the latest information, at least four platoons of police force have been deployed inside the campus.
The authorities are contemplating to declare sine die in the university as the situation inside the campus is now very disturbed and tense. “We are watching the situation and if need arises, we will be left with no alternative but to take the unfortunate decision,” informed the university registrar Dr Padan Kumar Jena. When asked as to whether the rejection of a candidature led to the disturbances in the campus, Jena retorted saying when the university had not yet made any notification for the elections, how could the candidature of an aspirant be rejected.