Student elections and politics behind them

Rupam Nath

(rupam4384@gmail.com)

In an academic year, there comes one season just like an examination or regular classes and that is 'election' season. In the present time with technological advancement, the sensation or touch of the such season is felt more and social media platforms promote a lot to increase the level of sensation. Students and educational institutions are hallmarks of a civilized society and so contribution in their respective fields is truly needed. A healthy environment in educational institutions is important for securing the future of a country in the long run.

Nowadays, student elections are popular in higher educational institutions and that reflects a positive sign in the context of the democratic forum of the country. Basically, a students' union is formed to solve issues related to students in particular and to have a greater impact on social, economic and political issues of society in general. As popularly said, "students are the backbone of a country" and educational institutions are bodies of these backbones. Without a body, the backbone is just a part of a skeleton. And hence a healthy student-friendly atmosphere is needed in the educational institution and 'student election' is one such atmosphere. It is needed as it helps to develop the values of democracy among students and also proves helpful in turning students into politically sound citizens, among other reasons.

Generally in the mid-term of an academic year, elections are held in most colleges and universities. The environment turns really sensitive in educational institutions. In current times, if one examines properly then 'politics' in student elections is an obvious and common thing. The student elections are supported by various organizations and political parties, whether directly or indirectly, but the backup is there for student representatives. If we look for two very basic reasons behind political or organizational backup, these are financial funding and group support, among many other reasons. It is not easy to spend money lavishly and bear expenses related to the election the majority of students contesting the election. And even an individual stand sometimes is not enough to compete in an election. Here one thing is clear following a particular ideology is not something that is unacceptable. It is needed and somehow it makes students more active in different issues related to society in the narrow sense and the democratic country in a broader way. Additionally, one cannot deny the fact that the majority of students contesting elections aspire for support from political parties or organisations. Interestingly, students having political or organizational support win in most cases except for a few exceptions. But what is to be noted here is the main point of student elections. Somewhere the means or ways undertaken by a political party or organization to manipulate students, i.e., voters are not healthy enough. Dirty politics finds its way into student elections. In some cases, the situation gets so bad that authorities are forced to cancel the election. Due to these circumstances, the true meaning of the election of any student union is negatively impacted. The value of debate and discussion gets little importance. The intellectuality of the students' community is overshadowed by false notions, which eventually result in conflicts.

The question arises: What if a student contesting for election has his/her own 'identity' regardless of others' identities - a representative who can think rationally and for the well-being of the institution in general rather than becoming prey to silly 'politics'? Representing a students' union body having partiality towards one ideology does not have a positive result in the long run. For instance, when one student body is formed by representatives having different party backgrounds, they do not carry the same level of coordination and can't work wholeheartedly for the interest of students. It is bitter but true that in the whole process, student politics is misguided by the narrow interest of a particular political party or organization and the own benefits of the elected representatives at the cost of neglecting students' interests.

In my opinion, student elections need some independence and flexibility without any outer intervention. Elections may become low-key and a 'grand atmosphere' may not prevail, but in this process students and institutions would get benefits in the long run. One who wants to contest an election should go for an election on the basis of his/her own capabilities. An environment where students elect their representatives based on some principles of personality, like leadership capability, communication capability, problem-solving aptitude, critical thinking and so on. Additionally, the interests of an institution and students should get the uppermost importance rather than the benefits of political parties or organizations. Elections create political consciousness among the populace and the same is true of student elections, where a healthy environment will lead to consciousness among students in the wider sense. Keeping aside ideological differences, healthy debates and discussions should play key roles in shaping student elections. "Morning shows the day" - going by this dictum rational thinking and decision-making capacity should be implanted in every student right from early student days, and if needed the authorities concerned should intervene to light the path of healthy student body elections, keeping politics behind.