Kerala University VC says no move to ban student politics, stresses need to curb violence

THIRUVANTHAPURAM: Kerala University Vice-Chancellor Mohanan Kunnummal on Saturday said there was no move to ban politics on campuses, stressing that measures should be taken to prevent violence and ensure that academic activities were not disrupted. Responding to reporters' queries about reports of a draft code of conduct regulating student politics that recently came up for consideration before the university syndicate, Kunnummal said universities were examining the matter in line with directions from the High Court.

He said the issue had come up earlier at Mahatma Gandhi University (MG University) in Kottayam, which had prepared a document on regulating campus activities. Subsequently, the High Court directed universities to examine the MG University document and frame their own regulations, he said. Kunnummal said universities were studying the matter following the court's directions and discussions at government-level meetings.

Different proposals and documents could come up during the deliberations, and the university's statutory bodies would discuss the issue before taking a decision, he said. "One of the issues is how politics should be defined," he said, adding that there were differences of opinion on the relationship between student organisations and political parties.

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Kunnummal said student organisations such as the SFI and KSU were active on campuses in Keralam and that student politics should not be viewed solely as an impediment to education. "If political activity is beneficial to students, there is no need to prevent it," he said, stressing that campuses should remain spaces for discussions and debates on contemporary issues.

The Vice-Chancellor said the fundamental objective was to ensure that violence did not occur on campuses and that academic activities continued without disruption. "There should be no violence in campuses, colleges or educational institutions. There is no disagreement on these two points. The question is what causes such incidents and what needs to be done to prevent them," he said.

Kunnummal said decisions on the proposed code would be taken after discussions in the university's statutory bodies, including the Senate, Syndicate and Academic Council, rather than by the Vice-Chancellor alone. He said the issue was complex and required deliberation, adding that the university would implement the decision taken through the appropriate institutional process.

Emphasising the importance of freedom of expression, Kunnummal said campuses should allow students to express differing opinions and engage in debate without resorting to violence. "Your opinion should have the space to be expressed, and I should be able to listen to it. We should never resort to violence because of our differences," he said. He said the freedom to express one's views did not give anyone the right to deny others the same freedom or resort to physical confrontation. Following the reports about the draft Code of Conduct regulating student politics last month, Keralam Higher Education Minister Roji M John also clarified that there is no such move against campus politics.