JU vice-chancellor appeals to stakeholders to maintain peace

Jadavpur University Vice- Chancellor Suranjan Das has appealed to all stakeholders of

the institute to "remain calm and maintain peace" during students' union polls on February 19.

Das, in a statement issued recently, expressed hope that the "long-standing tradition of cooperation and harmony

on university campus would be upheld" on the day of elections. "Our students have been at the forefront of various

movements for social justice, awareness and equality.... "Another matter of pride for all of us has been the

calm, orderly and peaceful way in which students' union polls have been conducted at our university, setting an example for

other institutes of higher education across India," Das said in the letter, made available to media on Monday.

He called upon all members of the university - students, teachers, researchers, non-teaching staff, officers

and others - to work together to "preserve the spirit of democracy and the sanctity of the great institution".

"Students of Jadavpur University have showed that democracy cannot function in an environment of violence or

intimidation... the atmosphere that has prevailed during and after previous elections in the university has remained a

testimony to this," the VC stated. Students' union polls would be held at the state

university after a gap of three years. A teacher at the varsity said the appeal by the VC

assumed significance amid heightened tension on the campus, with the RSS-affiliated ABVP and the CPI(M)-backed SFI

accusing each other of trying to thwart their campaigns by tearing down posters and intimidating supporters.

Despite repeated attempts, Das, however, did not respond to phone calls.

The ABVP, for the first time, has fielded candidates for several 'general' category seats and eight central panel

posts -- four in arts and four in engineering faculties. State unit secretary of the ABVP, Saptarshi Sarkar,

said, "The varsity students are fed up with SFI's politics of gherao and frequent demonstrations on the campus, disrupting

academic activities. They will vote for our candidates in large numbers, this time."

The SFI, which has put up candidates for all eight central panel posts and 40 general seats, exuded confidence

that it would win the polls by a huge margin. Debraj Debnath, an SFI leader at JU, said the students

at the "university would re-elect SFI candidates - who stand for secularism and democratic values".