E-Paper
Lyngdoh panel proposals pique student leaders
IF RECOMMENDATIONS of the Lyndgoh Committee on students union polls are implemented, a majority of student leaders like Shiv Bhushan Singh, Tintu Singh, Vinod Tripathi, Shantanu Sharma, Ram Singh Rana and others may not be allowed to contest the students? union elections.
IF RECOMMENDATIONS of the Lyndgoh Committee on students union polls are implemented, a majority of student leaders like Shiv Bhushan Singh, Tintu Singh, Vinod Tripathi, Shantanu Sharma, Ram Singh Rana and others may not be allowed to contest the students’ union elections.
The committee has suggested that students older than 26 years should not be allowed to contest elections while those studying to get a third degree irrespective of age should be barred as well. These recommendations may just prove to be the proverbial end of the road for many seeking a career in students’ politics.
Other recommendations include—big universities implement an indirect mode of election and most importantly an expenditure limit of Rs 5,000 be set per candidate. The committee also recommends that an Election Commission-like body conduct or oversee polls on campuses.
The Lyngdoh Committee was formed on the directives of the Supreme Court to clean up student politics. The Apex court directed the committee to examine and consider all aspects of students elections. Thereafter, the committee visited several cities, including Lucknow, before preparing its report.
The recommendations have brought back smiles on the faces of LU administration, principals of degree colleges and teachers. But it has rattled almost all the student leaders who sense enforcement of the Lyngdoh Committee recommendations would end their prospect of contesting.
Welcoming the recommendations, LU V-C RP Singh told HT Lucknow Live that, “We were always in favour of indirect elections and age restrictions. I am happy the committee also holds similar view. Let’s hope their suggestions are implemented properly, since it is vital for cleaning up student politics.”
He added: “Students’ unions should be representatives of serious students. We support, the idea of top five students of every class to form an electoral school who may later, elect somebody amongst them as LUSU president, vice-president, or general secretary. It will be a good move.”
Other officials like Proctor AN Singh too, said the Lyngdoh Committee recommendations would bring in the much-desired reform in students politics. Interestingly, similar suggestions also came during the regime of BJP Government in the State but it could not be enforced properly. “Let’s hope these suggestions do not meet the similar fate,” he said.
But the recommendation have not gone down well with student leaders as they argue that it is against the spirit of democratic set-up of India. Says Tintu Singh, student leader of ruling Samajwadi Party: “Most of the suggestions are impractical and cannot be enforced at all.” LUSU general secretary Vinod Tripathi says as long as a student is a bona fide student of LU, he or she must be allowed to contest elections.”
The recommendations can be used as a tool to clean student politics but will the government be able to handle the pressure from students?
