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Mamata out to muzzle campuses?

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A gathering protests the Trinamool government’s ban on rallies at College Square, central Kolkata, on June 10. The protest is ongoing

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Coming close on the heels of the College Square rally ban, the new student election rules promulgated by the state government have raised the hackles of many citizens

By Sucheta Dasgupta

Student politics has traditionally been the first stepping stone to legislature for most politicians worth their salt in the state of West Bengal.

Last week, the Mamata Banerjee government framed rules under the West Bengal Universities and Colleges (Administration and Regulation) Act 2017, purportedly to depoliticise campuses. They are yet to be notified but are sure to raise the hackles of many an activist or even neutral-minded citizens.

Students will henceforth be barred from contesting elections on political parties’ symbols. The student union will be replaced by the student council of which the president and the vice-president will be teachers nominated by the vice-chancellor. The treasurer who will control the flow of funds will also be a teacher. Elections will be held only for the post of class representative, once every two years.  The general secretary will be a student elected by all the class representatives in the first meeting of the council.

There are additional stipulations—candidates must have at least 60 percent attendance, no criminal record, reasonably good academic performance and, once elected, cannot serve more than two terms.

The rules are set to become effective in the 2018 campus elections in the state.

The new regulations, however, seem to have arrived at a time when totalitarianism by governments is slowly gaining ground all over the country. For instance, in Telangana’s Hyderabad, the public relations officer of Osmania University, a hotbed of pro-beef agitations and Dalit protests, has also last week issued a note proscribing all political activity, including public meetings, on campus.

And in April, the Jawaharlal Nehru University— following a recent University Grants Commission’s notification—announced a massive reduction in student intake for its MPhil and PhD courses for the upcoming academic session, seen by many quarters as punishment by the centre for its 2016 stir that followed the arrest of JNU Students’ Union president from AISF and PhD scholar Kanhaiya Kumar.

Which begs the question, are ruling parties and their unions finding themselves on the back foot on these campuses, at least as far as electoral politics is concerned?

Trinamool Congress’ students union TMCP has slowly managed to gather influence in educational institutions across the state but so far it has failed to manage a breakthrough in the prestigious and politically significant Presidency College and Jadavpur University.  Here the main forces are still the SFI, the students’ wing of the CPM, and, in case of Presidency, the Independent Consolidation, a coalition of anti-SFI forces like Chhatra Parishad (Congress), Naxalites, SUCI and DSO.

The IC won the student elections this year with SFI presenting it with a tough fight. In JU, the SFI made a comeback in the arts faculty while TMCP lost the polls to all five office-bearers’ posts.

So these steps, which many might call undemocratic, might well be a plan to muzzle campus politics, coming as they do on the heels of the June 1 rally ban at historic College Square, College Street, in central Kolkata—which is witness to the freedom struggle, the Naxalite uprisings and even the popular movement that brought Banerjee herself to power and has been the protest hub of Kolkata since the 19th century. The ostensible trigger for the ban was a student’s putative complaint to the CM that they found it hard to study amid the noise generated by the protests in the area.

Interestingly, a group of individuals led by theatre artistes Joyraj Bhattacharjee and Shreyasi Bhaduri and poet and academic Nandini Dhar, picking lampoon and hyperbole as their weapons of choice, have been holding a silent protest at the very spot for over a week now. As participants do little more than loiter or sit in the area, wearing strips of black cloth covering their mouths, reading, holding placards and making street art, police have no ground to arrest them and, though present in strength, can only stand and stare.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

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Parliament Winter Session to be held from November 25 to December 20

Kiren Rijiju, Parliamentary Affairs Minister affirmed that the government’s proposal to convene both Houses of the Parliament (Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha) during this period was sanctioned by President Droupadi Murmu.

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Parliament Winter Session to be held from November 25 to December 20

The Parliament Winter Session will commence from November 25 and will conclude on December 20. The winter session will take place two days after the announcement of Maharashtra and Jharkhand Assembly election results.

Kiren Rijiju, Parliamentary Affairs Minister affirmed that the government’s proposal to convene both Houses of the Parliament (Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha) during this period was sanctioned by President Droupadi Murmu.

Notably, the upcoming Winter Session will be the observance of Constitution Day on November 26, commemorating the 75th anniversary of the adoption of the Indian Constitution. Reportedly, the event will be celebrated in the Central Hall of Samvidhan Sadan in New Delhi, with members of both Houses gathering to honour the country’s foundational document.

Taking to X, Kiren Rijiju said that the President, on the recommendation of Government of India, has approved the proposal for summoning of both the Houses of Parliament for the Winter Session, 2024 from 25th November to 20th December, 2024 (subject to exigencies of parliamentary business). The Union Minister added that on 26th November, 2024 (Constitution Day), 75th Anniversary of the adoption of Constitution, the event would be celebrated in the Central Hall of Samvidhan Sadan.

In this session, raging discussions are expected to be held around two key legislative proposals: The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024 and One Nation, One Election.

Previously, Union Home Minister Amit Shah had stressed on the importance of the Waqf (Amendment Bill), asserting that it would be addressed in the winter session. Addressing an election rally in Gurugram, the Home Minister said that they will resolve The Waqf Board law in the next session of the Parliament.

At present, a Joint Parliamentary Committee(JPC) is holding marathon meetings across various states to engage with stakeholders and address their concerns and build a consensus on the contentious bill.

Reportedly, the Centre might also look to introduce One Nation One Election Bill which will ensure simultaneous polls for Lok Sabha and state assemblies.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his Unity Day speech in Gujarat, said that the One Nation, One Election proposal, which aims to synchronise all elections in the country either on a single day or within a specific time frame, will be cleared soon and will become a reality.

The Prime Minister said that they are now working towards One Nation One Election, which will strengthen India’s democracy, give the optimum outcome of India’s resources and the country will gain new momentum in achieving the dream of a developed India.

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Kerala High Court quashes charges against director Sreekumar Menon in complaint filed by actor Manju Warrier

The court also noted a significant delay in the actor’s report of the alleged incident involving obscene language.

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Kerala High Court quashes charges against film director Sreekumar Menon in complaint filed by actor Manju Warrier

In a significant development, the Kerala High Court has quashed all charges against film director Sreekumar Menon in a case filed by renowned South Indian actress Manju Warrier. The criminal case lodged in 2019, alleged stalking and harassment by Sreekumar Menon against Manju Warrier.

Justice S. Manu, who presided over the case, found insufficient evidence to support the charges pressed against the film director. The charges included stalking under Section 354D of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), using obscene language under Section 294(b) of the IPC, and criminal intimidation under Section 509 of the IPC.

The Kerala High Court also noted a significant delay in the actor’s report of the alleged incident involving obscene language. The complaint, which was filed in 2019, mentioned an altercation that supposedly occurred in Dubai in December 2018. Furthermore, the Court pointed out that Section 188 of the CrPC mandates seeking Central Government permission for prosecuting offenses committed outside India.

The final report also included a charge under Section 120(o) of the Kerala Police Act. However, the High Court observed that this offense is non-cognizable, meaning the police cannot initiate a case without specific permission. Since the other charges were deemed unsustainable, the Kerala High Court ruled that prosecution solely under this section would not hold validity.

The case stemmed from a petition filed by Manju Warrier with the Kerala State Police Chief in 2019. The petition alleged stalking and harassment by Sreekumar Menon. Subsequently, the petition led to the registration of an FIR at the Thrissur East Police Station. 

Both film director Sreekumar Warrier and actor Manju Menon have enjoyed successful careers in the Malayalam film industry. Their collaboration on the film Odiyan, starring Mohanlal, marked Sreekumar Menon’s directorial debut. 

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Will not contest any election in future, have to stop somewhere: Sharad Pawar hints at retirement

The NCP leader said that he is not in power, and his tenure in the Rajya Sabha has one-and-a-half years left.

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Will not contest any election in future, have to stop somewhere: Sharad Pawar hints at retirement

Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) senior leader Sharad Pawar, 83, today hinted at retirement as he said he may not contest any more elections after his Rajya Sabha term ends in 18 months.

Sharad Pawar who formed the NCP in 1999 is widely regarded as the grand old man of Maharashtra politics. The veteran politician was speaking at his family stronghold of Baramati in western Maharashtra, which will see a Pawar vs Pawar contest in the November 20 Assembly election.

Addressing a rally, the NCP leader said that he is not in power, and his tenure in the Rajya Sabha has one-and-a-half years left. He continued that he will not contest any election in future, and that he will have to stop somewhere. He also thanked the voters of Baramati for making him an MP and MLA a staggering 14 times overall. Notably, a potential close of a nearly six-decade-long political career comes as the NCP and its allies – the Congress and the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena group – contest this month’s election.

In this election, the fight for Baramati is being seen as a referendum on Sharad Pawar’s continuing influence over voters, since it sees his grandnephew, Yugendra Pawar, do battle against his nephew Ajit Pawar, whose led the rebellion last year that forced the NCP to split.

NCP leader Ajit Pawar is a five-time MLA from Baramati but, in each of his earlier wins, he had the backing of his uncle’s party. This will be the first assembly election in which he contests under his own banner.

The result of the election for the Baramati Lok Sabha seat, where the people voted overwhelmingly for Sharad Pawar’s candidate, his daughter Supriya Sule, underlines Ajit Pawar’s task at hand.

Speaking at Baramati, Sharad Pawar said that he holds no grudge against Ajit Pawar, adding that he led the people there for 30 years. However, he also said that it is time for him to prepare a young and dynamic leadership, which can take over for the next 30 years, apparently referring to Yugendra Pawar’s future position.

The veteran politician continued that he is not seeking votes, acknowledging that voters have always been magnanimous with all Pawar family members. He added that however, now they have to look ahead at the future.  

Notably, Sharad Pawar’s retirement from electoral politics has been circulating for some time now, and was raked up again in January by nephew Ajit Pawar, who had fought against and forced a split of his uncle’s party, leading the rebels into an alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party and a faction of the Shiv Sena that had earlier broken away from Uddhav Thackeray.

At that time, Ajit Pawar hit out at Sharad Pawar for not sticking to a 2023 resolution to step down from the party’s top post. He said that some people simply refuse to retire. He continued that people should stop after reaching a certain age, but some are not ready, even after turning 80. Referring to his uncle, Ajit Pawar said that this person is not ready to retire.

Responding to this jab, Sharad Pawar said that he is neither tired nor retired, echoing late former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s remarks. He questioned who they were to tell him to retire, adding that he can still work.

Last year in May, while the NCP was battling its internal crisis, Sharad Pawar announced his resignation as party boss. However, the announcement was unanimously rejected by top leaders. A few days later, he withdrew his resignation.

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