Political activities have no place in educational institutions: Keralam HC

The Kerala High Court building in Ernakulam. File

A Division Bench of the Kerala High Court observed that political activities such as dharna, hunger strikes and Satyagraha have “no place in a constitutional democracy, much less in academic institutions”, as it quashed a Single Bench order that had permitted 16 Students’ Federation of India (SFI) activists to appear for semester examinations at the Sree Sankaracharya University of Sanskrit, Kalady.

The Court cited another Division Bench ruling from 2017, observing that educational institutions are meant to impart education, not politics. It also said anyone indulging in such activities in an educational institution would be liable to be expelled or rusticated.

The Division Bench of Justices Anil K. Narendran and S. Muralee Krishna recalled that the 2017 decision had also quoted B.R. Ambedkar’s words in 1949. Ambedkar had stated that “to maintain democracy, we must abandon the bloody methods of revolution”, that “we must abandon the method of civil disobedience, non-cooperation and Satyagraha”, and that where constitutional methods were open, there could be no justification for these unconstitutional methods.

On this premise, the Court held that a suspended student would have to suffer the consequences of a suspension, such as an attendance shortage.

In the absence of statements from the students indicating that they were qualified to appear for the examinations, the Single Bench erred in granting permission, the Division Bench observed. It further said the students had not brought forward any evidence of the required internal assessment marks or attendance before the Single Bench.

The students were under suspension pending an inquiry, for allegedly staging a mock cremation of the Vice-Chancellor, Ciza Thomas, manhandling her and attempting to damage property. The University Syndicate had constituted an inquiry committee to look into the alleged incident and take disciplinary action. The committee had found the students guilty and recommended action.

The SFI activists have denied the allegations, claiming that their protest was meant to highlight their 18-point charter of demands, including the appointment of required faculty and the provision of basic facilities for students across various departments.