Kerala University VC says no move to ban student politics, stresses need to curb violence

Kerala University Vice Chancellor Mohanan Kunnummal

Kerala University Vice-Chancellor Mohanan Kunnummal on Saturday said there was no move to ban politics on campuses and stressed that measures should be taken to prevent violence and ensure that academic activities are not disrupted.

Responding to questions from reporters on reports of a draft code of conduct governing student policy that came up for consideration before the university syndicate recently, Kunnummal said the universities were examining the matter as per Supreme Court directions.

He said the issue had come up earlier in the Mahatma Gandhi University (MG University), Kottayam, which had prepared a document to regulate campus activities. Subsequently, the High Court directed the universities to review the MG University document and frame their own regulations, he said.

Kunnummal said the universities are studying the matter as per the court’s directions and discussions at government level meetings. Various proposals and documents could come up during the deliberations and the statutory bodies of the university would discuss it before taking a decision, he said. “One of the questions is how politics should be defined,” he said, adding that there are differences of opinion about the relationship between student organizations and political parties.

He said that student organizations like SFI and KSU are active in Kerala universities and that student politics should not be seen only as a hindrance to education. “If political activity is beneficial to students, there is no need to prevent it,” he said, stressing that campuses should remain a space for discussion and debate on current issues.

The Vice-Chancellor said the basic objective is to ensure that there is no violence in the universities and that academic activities continue without interruption. “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.

It requires discretion

Kunnummal said decisions on the proposed code would be taken after deliberations in the university’s statutory bodies, including Senate, Syndicate and Academic Council, and not just by the vice-chancellor. He said the issue was complex and required consideration, adding that the university would implement the decision taken through the appropriate institutional process.

Stressing the importance of freedom of expression, Kunnummal said campuses should allow students to express differing views and engage in debate without resorting to violence. “Your opinion should have a 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.

He said the freedom to express one’s views does not give anyone the right to deny others the same freedom or resort to physical confrontation. Following reports of a draft code of conduct governing student policies last month, Keralam Higher Education Minister Roji M John also clarified that there is no such move against the campus policy.

Published – 24 Oct 2026 21:15 IST