SFI

On the Supreme Court Verdict on JNUSU Elections

9.12.11

The Supreme Court has passed an order in the JNUSU Court Case yesterday. After listening to the Amicus Curiae and the Counsels of the Joint Struggle Committee, JNU administration and the YFE the two judge bench of A K Ganguly and J S Khehar has vacated the stay on the JNUSU Elections modifying its earlier stay order. Following exemptions from the Lyngdoh Committee recommendations have been granted for the conduct of the JNUSU Elections as an interim arrangement till the matter is finally resolved by the Constitution Bench: 1. The maximum age limit for M Phil/Ph D students has been increased from 28 years to 30 years. 2. There will be no requirement for attendance to contest elections. 3. Photocopied material would be allowed in election campaign subject to an expenditure limit of Rs 5000 per candidate. However, the other exemptions suggested in the Amicus Curiaes petition have not been granted. These include allowing people to contest twice for the post of office-bearer, retaining the original time frame of the JNUSU Elections and the modification in disciplinary action/criminal record clause to charged and convicted from tried or convicted. A Grievance Redressal Mechanism would also be there. The JNUSU Elections can now be conducted as per the new guidelines laid down by the Court. The JSCs lawyer has conveyed that JNUSU Elections can be conducted in the month of January itself. In yesterdays hearing the JSC and the JNU Administrations lawyer took a position in favour of granting these exemptions and the Amicus Curiae himself also explained why he had suggested these exemptions in the case of JNU, mentioning the discussions he had with the students and teachers of JNU. However, he also submitted that the YFE was another group within the students which wanted a blanket implementation of Lyngdoh Recommendations in JNU. The YFE has played a pernicious role in this entire struggle from the very beginning. Not only has the YFE been absent from all struggles to restore the JNUSU, it left no stone unturned to sabotage an amicable resolution at the final juncture. It is unfortunate that the exemptions suggested by the Amicus Curiae have not been granted in entirety. The Judiciary has not been able to appreciate the overwhelming opinion in favour of conducting the JNUSU Elections as per the JNUSU Constitution, which was reflected to a certain extent in the Amicus Curiaes suggestions. After three long years of apathy and inordinate delay in the court, this cannot be termed as a welcome judgment. However, with yesterdays verdict there is a qualitative change in the situation vis--vis the JNUSU Elections. The continuing impasse regarding the conduct of the JNUSU Elections has been broken, which is definitely an advance. The struggle to restore the JNUSU Constitution completely would have to be carried further in the future. However, there is little hope of any further legal recourse in the immediate future till the Constitution Bench is formed to deliberate on the matter. The time horizon of any such development or opportunity cannot be predicted with certainty at the moment. Given the present situation and the backdrop where no elected JNUSU has existed for the last three years, the SFI believes that the best option is to conduct the JNUSU Elections as per the new interim arrangement. Any other option would amount to delaying or not having the JNUSU Elections at all. The newly elected JNUSU and all future unions should be mandated by a UGBM to carry forward the struggle for full restoration of the JNUSU Constitution and utilize every possible opportunity for the same. Any concrete step towards conducting the JNUSU Elections would require an endorsement of the guidelines laid down by the Court from a UGBM. SFI appeals to the student community to support the conduct of the JNUSU Elections as per the Supreme Courts order in the UGBM which would be held on 6 January, 2012. The JNU student community has played a crucial role in the struggle for the restoration of the JNUSU Elections and the JNUSU Constitution. The support of the student community was crucial in the negotiation process with the Amicus Curiae and instrumental in getting the Supreme Court judges to reappoint Gopal Subramanium as the Amicus Curiae and reopening of the dialogue process in the month of September this year. The limited relief which has come from the Court is because of the united struggle waged by the student community. The SFI salutes the JNU student community for the perseverance it has shown in this long drawn and arduous struggle so far. This resolve for restoration of the JNUSU Elections as per our Constitution must be preserved and strengthened in the days to come. The SFI reiterates its commitment to make all efforts and take this struggle to its logical culmination in the days to come. Zico, Vice-President, SFI-JNU P. K. Anand, Secretary, SFI-JNU