All 16 nominees found ineligible for student elections in Chandigarh college

With none of the candidates meeting the 75% attendance criteria, it now remains unclear if any election will now be held at the Chandigarh college at all

In a major turn of events, all 16 candidates who had filed nominations for the upcoming Panjab University Campus Student Council (PUCSC) elections at the Government College of Commerce and Business Administration (GCCBA) in Sector 50 were found ineligible to contest as per college authorities.

All 16 candidates who had filed nominations for the upcoming student council elections at the Government College of Commerce and Business Administration (GCCBA) in Sector 50, Chandigarh, were found ineligible to contest as per college authorities (HT File (Representative image))

With none of the candidates meeting the 75% attendance criteria, it now remains unclear if any election will now be held at the college at all.

There were six nominations filed for the post of president, four each for the posts of vice-president and general secretary and two for the joint secretary.

Voicing their displeasure over the developments, students on Friday planned a protest on campus, but called it off after a meeting with the principal.

One of the 16 nominees, not wishing to be named, said a list carrying the name of one eligible candidate had earlier been released only to be taken down soon after. The same, the nominee added, confused the students.

Accusations of the college not including attendance for involvement in activities like NSS, which are otherwise used to check eligibility for the final exams, are also rife.

What also came as a surprise to many is that a similar incident took place at the college during the 2018 elections, when 28 nominees were ineligible for contesting over the attendance issue.

Simply following rules: College officials

Campus officials, meanwhile, said the college was simply following the rules outlined by the Panjab University and Lyngdoh Committee, adding, “Students who have less than 75% attendance and who have had any arrears in the year of the election are not eligible to contest the elections. We have only followed the rules and it is perhaps a coincidence that none of the students were able to meet these requirements.”

Authorities, however, on being asked if elections have been called off now that no candidates have cleared the eligibility criteria neither confirmed nor denied the same.

Police are also keeping a close eye on the developments, with station house officer Sector 49 saying they will remain vigilant to ensure peace is maintained during the election period.

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Colleges on edge as D-day nears

With the election day fast-approaching, the situation continues to remain tense at other city colleges. The four bouncers hired by the DAV College, Sector 10, authorities were seen guarding the entrance amid frenetic activity on Friday. College authorities had dialled the police station to help maintain law-and-order amid early-morning sloganeering on campus. Minor squabbles were reported from Sri Guru Gobind Singh Khalsa College in Sector 26, but the situation has improved since the time when nominations were filed on Wednesday.