Hyderabad: Eflu agrees to hold students' election

HYDERABAD: Following mounting protests by students against show cause notices given to three students and the alleged 'dictatorial' behaviour of the administration, the English and Foreign Languages University (Eflu) authorities on Friday said students' elections will be held this year.
Students on Friday turned up in black dresses to the classes as a mark of protest against the various 'anti-student' steps being taken by the varsity.Giving in to their demands, the administration issued a notice saying the competent authority has initiated the modalities and the elections will be held shortly. The polls are expected to take place before November as the students have exams next month.
However, students said the fight is not just to elect a students' union but to prevent the administration from encroaching on their freedom. "It's not just about the students' elections but more about the kind of freedom given to students on campus. It feels as if the administration is keeping a check on every step that students take," said S Sarath, a student leader.
In fact, the trigger for the latest protest was when the varsity issued notices to three students, one for a Facebook post on cleanliness on the campus, another for screening a movie without the administration's permission and another for eating chicken in the hostel mess on Gandhi Jayanti.
The trigger for mass protest began when the administration granted show-cause notice to three students in a month's time. A student named Arjab Sarkar was asked to justify a Facebook post on his account on Eflu's cleanliness drive under the Swacch Bharat campaign. Second show-cause notice was given to a member of Student's Federation of India for screening a movie without the administration's permission. Another student was given a notice for eating chicken in the hostel mess on Gandhi Jayanthi.