No problem with JNU polls but can’t ignore Lyngdoh recommendations: V-C

Asked if elections would be held this year, Pandit said: “100%. Who said there is no election?” Pandit added that the administration is waiting for admissions to be completed. While the first admissions list for Masters admissions has been released, a second and third list will follow. “Masters students only account for 40% (of new students). 60% comprise PhD admissions…the NTA (National Testing Agency) conducts it. We have to wait for doctoral students to come in,” the V-C said, adding that PhD admissions for all central universities have been delayed.

Pandit drew attention to the Lyngdoh Committee guidelines which require elections to be held between 6-8 weeks from the academic session’s starting date.

“The Lyngdoh Committee clearly tells us that all voters should have taken admission for that academic year…I’m waiting for the students to have the GBM. They also cannot have the GBM because all the students have not come in. It’s like a catch-22 situation,” she said, also pointing out that a students’ union cannot last beyond a year as per the guidelines. “There is no previous students’ union as per the Lyngdoh Committee,” Pandit said. “The last election was contested and it is sub-judice. It is still in court and has not been resolved. During COVID, there was no election,” she said. On why the elections did not happen last year, Pandit said that admissions finished late.

According to the V-C, the office of the Dean of Students has been told that once the MA admissions are done, all the groups can be called for a discussion. “..If they want, we can take legal opinion,” Pandit said. “I want unions to come in because that will allow democratic practices to come in. And the students help us. I’m all for it (elections). But the Lyngdoh Committee has given a very strict framework. You can’t go against that,” she added.