The Karnataka cabinet on Wednesday, 9 September decided to reintroduce student elections in universities and colleges, with political parties and student organisations barred from participating, deputy chief minister G. Parameshwara said.
“Student elections were earlier held in colleges but were subsequently banned. We have now decided to reintroduce elections in universities and colleges,” Parameshwara told reporters after the cabinet meeting.
Each college will have one student president, two vice-presidents, including one woman, one general-secretary, two joint secretaries, including one woman, and a six-member executive committee, including two women.
There will be no reservation in the elections, as the government does not want to encourage caste-based politics among students, Parameshwara said. The detailed modalities, including the timing and manner of conducting the elections, will be decided later.
The elections will not be mandatory. Colleges can hold them only if students want them, with the decision resting with the students rather than the management. “If students don’t want it, they can decide not to have it. The management cannot decide. It’s the students’ choice,” Parameshwara said.
He said the government had constituted a committee headed by minister Sharan Prakash Patil, which visited colleges and universities and submitted a report. The cabinet decision was taken based on its recommendations, with the primary objective of developing leadership qualities among students.
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