As the title says, we
want to address the freshers. Those who understand that after having studied
for several years - at the cost of society - will not see their knowledge as
instrument of plunder for personal gain, those who have dreamt that one day
they would apply their intelligence, their abilities, and their knowledge in
the interest of the liberation of people who today suffer in misery and in
ignorance. Those who understand that the infrastructure and resources which are
being utilised to facilitate us are being extracted out of blood and sweat of
working masses leading miserable lives themselves.
By Freshers,
we don't mean the only ones who have set foot in the university in the recent
days but all those who are sensitive towards the developments in the society.
Who haven’t been entrapped by the careerist propaganda of ruling classes that
reduces individual into a selfish being having no concern towards the well
being of others. And those who are open to change, change themselves and the
society for the well being of all. We welcome them to this world of material
realities, the world of struggle. The struggle that was so dear to our legendary
leader Shaheed Bhagat Singh, the struggle that aims to end the exploitation of
man by man.
Once or twice we all
will come across (in library or the coffee house at student centre and in VC
office too) this quote by Jawaharlal Nehru: "A university stands for
humanism, for tolerance for reason, for the adventure of ideas and for the
search for truth. It stands for the onward march of human race towards even
higher objectives. If the universities discharge their duties adequately, then,
it is well with the nation and people."
But we
soon come to realize that it is not the case. The impact of complex
socio-economic and political system is so immense that things go on quite an
opposite path. On the one hand our education system is such that it isolates the
students from the society and its development to such an extent that they fail
to understand the basic problems of the society and their cause. On the other hand, the teacher-student
relation becomes hierarchical, denying the possibility of a better atmosphere
for the purpose of education. Instead the semester system and compulsory
attendance further limits the creativity and exploring nature of students
inside the walls of the classrooms. There are exceptions to it but that matters
a little in totality. This results in great desperation and frustration in the
students in general. Moreover their
future plays in the hands of market forces based on the principle of demand and
supply. And when this economy gets struck in crises, the students, once
determined to work for the change, are reduced to live life in mere hopelessness
and wander jobless.
In this
context the above cited purpose of the universities appear to fail. Moreover with the introduction of neo-liberal
policies, the “purpose” further seems to be a dream which could never be realized.
With the growing privatization and commercialization of the education, the
access to universities has not remained everybody’s cup of tea. The impact of
such policies can be clearly observed even in our university, when there is
steep hike in fee-structures (our university has proposed a 10 to 20% fee hike)
and in introduction of self-financed courses.
Now the question arises for the “freshers” what’s to be done
in such scenario? What’s their role?
The
popular misconception "Politics is a waste of time and 'genuine'
students have nothing to do with it", rejects the active participation
of students in politics (i.e..to build an equal and classless society). This
argument ultimately sides with the ruling class that needs to maintain the
status-quo to carry-on with the existing exploitative system. And as youth we
have a legacy of struggle against injustice and exploitation be it Shaheed
Bhagat Singh or Kartar Singh Sarabha or Che Guevara. The students have always played a crucial role
in every single sphere of social and political affairs. Be it the struggle
for independence, resistance for democratic rights during the period of
emergency, the struggles of Telangana, Kashmir, North-east or the Naxalite
movement, the propelling force has always been the students. Apart from
these, Punjab has a rich history of progressive students’ movement that has
always addressed the social and political problems throughout. However there
has been struggles lead by students, on the international scale opposing the
imperialist aggression of USA and Britain on Iraq and Afghanistan. Whole Europe
has witnessed a strong opposition to fee hikes and the economic policies
adopted during this ongoing economic crisis. So is the case with the uprisings
in Egypt and other Arab countries since last few years. In fact every social
transformation has always seen a strong involvement of youth and students and
their greater energy and enthusiasm has always revolutionized the whole process
of development of the society. This exactly is the point due to which the
democratic space of the students is restricted by various methods e.g. Lyngdoh
norms and police interference. The ultimate goal of these methods is to
depoliticise the students and isolate them from the broader issues of society.
Now let’s peep into the scenario
of student politics in Panjab University, Chandigarh. As everywhere, here also
exist two different aspects of politics. One is the pro people and the other is
the one that is the shadow of cheap mainstream politics (the dominant one here at
present). Being a hub of consumerism, here fashion statements mean much more to
the students than the burning issues of the society. Same is the case with the
student politics here which is dipped in the pomp and show culture. Politics
here (which is just restricted to elections in the case of PU) is just a method
to declare one's domination over others. Politics here comprises only of
filling admission forms and distributing syllabi and hostel forms for free to
the newcomers (don't be deceived by the conception of help, it's only for
votes). No doubt help shall be provided to the freshers but restricting student
politics to that only is the essence of this type of politics. Not only that soon
we will see these organisations sinking to bottoms taking the students for disc
parties, movies, trips and forget not the famous aspect all over - the free
liquor, just for votes. It must be understood that this shallow politics have
got nothing to offer but just these petty amusements. Never did these
organisations worry about the role of students in the decision making of these
organizations. And no one will be able to know about their funding, which
surprisingly after all the expenses totals to only a few thousands when
submitted to DSW office after elections.
Our concern behind all this
discussion to emphasise that the energy of youth is exploited by
glamorising the politics and promoting heroism and consumerism to create work
force for this vulgar politics. On the contrary it is
the duty of the students and all student organizations to raise their voice
against any unjust practices in the society as well as any policy framed by
ruling class that is against the interest of the masses but here our so-called
leaders barely know about any societal issues at all. We must
understand the
revolutionary aspect of student politics. Student politics must be recognised as
democratic platform on which the student can understand the concrete realities
of the society and organise themselves to solve the problems existing in it. They are the ones who have a better understanding of the
nature and society, hence can lead each and every change in the society. So,
they must question every established idea in the society to grasp the real
essence of the subjects at hand. It is crystal clear from the preceding
discussion that such organizations can never be the torch bearer to fight for
students' rights. Students must realize their duties towards the society in the
light of education preached by our beloved legendary leaders. An extract from
the manifesto of Naujawan Bharat Sabha that was led by Shaheed Bhagat Singh
clearly states the purpose of free rational approach towards understanding of
society. It says “Let the young men think independently, calmly, serenely
and patiently. Let them stand on their own feet. They must organize themselves
free from any influence and refuse to be exploited any more by the hypocrites
and insincere people.”
We shall be clear in
understanding that the purpose of our education is not to build an army of
clerks but rather serve the interests of broader masses of society. As once
Shaheed Bhagat Singh said, “Youth are to carry on the message of
Revolution to each and every corner of country. They are to raise the
Revolutionary spirit in people in crores residing in broken houses in factory
areas, slums and villages. It will leads to freedom and then exploitation of
one person by other will become impossible.” Only an organization based such ideology can
serve this purpose.
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