Stir over delayed Panjab University senate polls reveals divide among protesters

The ongoing stir over delayed Panjab University senate polls has revealed a divide among protesters over the reforms being sought in the governing body.
While the protest outside the Vice-Chancellor’s office has been going on for 19 days, as Chandigarh MP Manish Tewari visited the site on Friday, an interaction with students and senators highlighted differing opinions on the changes needed.
Senator Ravinder Singh Dhaliwal called for an increase in the number of senators, pointing out that while the student population and the number of affiliated colleges had grown, the size of the senate had remained unchanged.
On the other hand, student leaders from the Sath student party, including general secretary Ashmeet Singh Mann, emphasised that while they were not opposed to reforms, they wanted to ensure that any changes did not harm the interests of the university.
Mann also reiterated an old demand for student representation in the PU senate, with voting rights, similar to the representation held by the teaching and non-teaching staff.
MP Tewari, who met Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar on Wednesday, said Dhankhar was aware of the situation, but there was a need for clarity on the reforms sought by the protesters.
Accompanied by Congress’ Chandigarh unit president HS Lucky, Tewari suggested that a meeting involving all stakeholders—teachers’ unions, non-teachers’ unions and student representatives—could help build a consensus on the reforms needed.
Senators’ opinions also split
There is also a visible divide when it comes to senators. Ever since the protest’s first day, only around 10 senators have been actively protesting, with many of them from the registered graduates constituency, even as the senate has 47 elected members.
Speaking about this, one of the senators from the registered graduates constituency, Simranjit Singh Dhillon said, “Registered graduates are actively participating in the protest as we are not directly involved with the university. Some of the teachers and employees of the university are also with us, but are apprehensive of announcing their support.”
On the other hand, multiple senators who are also employees of PU have confirmed that they don’t agree with all aspects of the protest. A professor pointed out how in recent years the senate had become a body for bringing outsider politics into the university and ultimately the university’s academics were suffering.
Another senator said they had been assured the senate will not be abolished, only reforms will be introduced regarding the senators’ number and senate composition, and they were not totally opposed to it.
AAP MP writes to Vice-President
Meanwhile, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader and Sangrur MP Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer slammed the Union government on Friday over the delay in holding the PU senate elections, accusing it of indulging in a conspiracy to undermine the institution.
In a letter to Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar, Hayer stated that they would not take this lying down, promising a determined struggle on all fronts. He alleged that the central government had previously also tried to take control of the university from Punjab by pushing for centralisation, but was forced to step back due to the fierce opposition from the Bhagwant Singh Mann-led Punjab government. Reiterating the state government’s commitment to protecting Punjab’s interests, the AAP MP appealed to Dhankhar to immediately intervene in the matter.