Students of Jadavpur University, who are pressing for the resignation of its Vice-chancellor Abhijit Chakrabarti over calling in the police to break up a gherao on September 17, have decided to go for a referendum on the issue.
"Around 8000-9000 students from all the three faculties of science, engineering and arts will take part in this referendum on October 30 and 31. We will conduct it just the way we have been conducting student elections," Chiranjit Ghosh, general secretary of students' union Fetsu, told PTI.
He said that during the referendum, the question whether the VC should resign or not would be asked to the students and their choice would be reflected on ballot papers. Such a referendum will however not have any official validity but will build up pressure on the VC to put in his papers if the students vote against him. "You know these things better. I will not comment," the VC told PTI when asked to comment on the validity on referendum.
Earlier this year, students of the Presidency University had also conducted a referendum on whether Trinamool Congress MP and professor Sugata Bose should continue as chairperson of the elite institute's mentor group after joining politics.
JU students have been protesting for over a month against the VC for calling the police inside the campus during a gherao seeking a fresh probe panel on a student molestation case. Student unions have, however, withdrawn their class boycott call as students are returning to classes but have abstained from officially recording their attendance. "Our main demand is that the VC must resign," Ghosh said.
