Kerala University Vice-Chancellor Mohanan Kunnummal on Saturday said there was no proposal to ban student politics on campuses, as the university continues to examine draft regulations on political activity following directions from the Kerala High Court.
Responding to reporters on October 24, Kunnummal said the proposed code of conduct remained under consideration and that no final decision had been taken. The regulations aim to prevent campus violence and ensure academic activities are not disrupted, he said.
“If political activity is beneficial to students, there is no need to prevent it,” Kunnummal said, adding that campuses should remain spaces for discussion and debate on contemporary issues.
The draft has drawn criticism from student organisations and political leaders over provisions reportedly restricting activities such as classroom sloganeering, unauthorised assemblies and political mobilisation. The university has not approved the proposed rules.
Kunnummal said the issue arose after Mahatma Gandhi University in Kottayam prepared a document on regulating campus activities. The High Court subsequently directed universities to examine that document and frame their own regulations.
One of the issues under consideration is how student politics should be defined, including the relationship between student organisations and political parties, he said. Organisations such as the Students' Federation of India (SFI) and the Kerala Students Union (KSU) are active on campuses across the state.
The Vice-Chancellor said any decision would follow deliberations by the university's statutory bodies, including the Senate, Syndicate and Academic Council, rather than being taken by the Vice-Chancellor alone.
“There should be no violence in campuses, colleges or educational institutions. There is no disagreement on these two points. The question is what causes such incidents and what needs to be done to prevent them,” he said.
Higher Education Minister Roji M John had also rejected reports of a proposed ban in September, saying the draft was a preliminary document and had not been approved by the Syndicate. He said student organisations would be consulted before the draft was revised and placed before the university's decision-making bodies.
The proposed regulations follow legal proceedings on campus conduct after the 2018 murder of Abhimanyu, a student of Maharaja's College in Kochi. The court had asked universities to frame guidelines to address campus violence and regulate student activities.
Kunnummal said students must be able to express differing opinions without resorting to violence. “Your opinion should have the space to be expressed, and I should be able to listen to it. We should never resort to violence because of our differences,” he said.
