The students of various colleges and university of Maharaja Sriram Chandra Bhanja Deo University, Odisha, urged the Chairman of 5T, VK Pandian, to allow student union elections in colleges and universities across the state which has been on hold for several years, stated a report by The New Indian Express.

A similar appeal was also made by the Aam Aadmi Party recently, who also submitted a memorandum to the 5T Chairman while he was attending the Yuva Odisha programme held in Maharaja Sriram Chandra Bhanja Deo University playground on Tuesday, December 19.

Abhishek Panda, Tanmay Mohanty, Rakesh Das, Bhupen Mohanta and a few other students claimed that the student union elections, which were provisionally held every year in colleges and universities across the state, were halted for more than four years due to the lackadaisical attitude of state government. 

Student union election is the first opportunity for a student to understand politics and it develops leadership qualities in them if they are given the chance to contest elections at the college and university levels, they said.

"We are strongly protesting the system and the State Government immediately issues orders to colleges and universities to conduct the student union election," they further urged. 

Biswabijayee Panda, a leader of the Aam Aadmi Party said that he had submitted a memorandum to Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on December 15 demanding that the state government should intervene immediately.