Students for Democracy to host ‘Ekta Express’ convention on secular values

NEW DELHI: The Students for Democracy, a collective of university students from various institutions is organizing a student convention on harmony and campus democracy titled ‘Ekta Express - Mumbai’ on January 18, 2025. The students convention will be held at Warkari Bhavan, CBD Belapur, Navi Mumbai. The one-day event will bring together academics, artists, journalists, and students to unite and rally for secular values.

"The student convention will feature panel discussions on the need for ‘quality education and campus democracy’, as well as on the ‘role of artists in promoting harmony and unity, along with an art exhibition by the Safdar Hashmi Memorial Trust (SAHMAT)." the official statement said.

The University students from Maharashtra will also have an opportunity to participate in the state-level Ekta Quiz competition and a music performance by the Lok Sanskritik Manch Mumbai.

Student Convention on harmony and campus democracy

As per the official statement, the convention aims to highlight recent trends of troubling incidents of suppression of student expression. The values of harmony are necessary for growth and progress. "However, the suppression of students' expression has resulted in a hostile environment which further calls for a platform to unite people and reject the spread of communal politics and divisive elements in our society," the official statement said.

"The University Grants Commission (UGC) guidelines for schools and other institutions promote students to have a space to participate in decisions that affect their education, however, there are no functioning student unions or elections in many universities, and education has increasingly been treated as a mere commodity in the market," the official statement added.

Some of the few guests who will be joining and addressing the student convention include: Bhalchandra Mungekar (former VC Mumbai university and former rajyasabha member); Kiran Mane (actor); R Ramakumar (renowned economist); Sambhaji Bhagat (musician); Aishe Ghosh (former JNU students union president); Nitheesh Narayanan (author); Dipsita Dhar (artist and student leader), Srijan Bhattacharya and Uttam Ghosh (Cartoonist).