A protest demanding student council elections at Kolkata’s NRS Medical College ended after about eight hours when the college administration assured students that an emergency college council meeting would be held on Wednesday to discuss their demands.
The sit-in began at around 3 pm and continued beyond midnight, according to college sources cited by Anandabazar. Students had gathered in the principal’s office, leaving the principal there during the protest until the administration gave the assurance of a meeting.
The students said they had first submitted their demand for elections to the principal 16 days earlier. The principal had subsequently called a college council meeting and, according to the students, promised that a decision would be communicated after 14 days. They said that the promised period had passed without any further communication, prompting them to raise the issue again.
Medical student Swapnil Ghar told Anandabazar that no student council election had been held at the institution for about a year and a half. He said the college had earlier been under an acting teacher, who did not take a decision on the matter. According to Ghar, the principal told students that he had sought time from the state health department but had not received it.
Students also alleged that organisations backed by the ruling party were attempting to create a parallel student council and that efforts were being made to favour certain groups. These allegations were made by the protesting students and were not independently established in the report. The students further claimed that nomination notices had been issued twice earlier but were later withdrawn.
The administration’s decision to convene the emergency college council meeting places the question of student representation before the institution’s formal governing body. The students said the principal emailed the state health department during Tuesday’s protest and questioned why the communication had not been sent earlier. The college council meeting scheduled for Wednesday is expected to discuss the students’ demand for elections.
