Bengaluru: Govt to conduct student elections as per Lyngdoh panel recommendations
Bengaluru: The government will conduct student union elections in universities and colleges in line with the recommendations of the JM Lyngdoh Committee report, Higher Education Minister MC Sudhakar and Medical Education Minister Dr Sharan Prakash Patil said on Wednesday.
According to The New Indian Express, the decision was taken during a meeting convened with various student organisations. Sudhakar said elections would be held in the current academic year, with modifications suited to present campus conditions.
He also referred to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s announcement in the State Budget 2026 regarding the conduct of student union elections.
Dr Sharanprakash said that the elections will be complementary in terms of making students aware of the democratic aspirations of the Constitution.
Student organisations urged the government to conduct elections without delay. Student leaders representing Left-affiliated organisations, Lekha Adavi, Veena Naik, Shivappa, and Dodda Basavaraj of SFI, AISF, AIDSO, and AISO, called for structured representation in the elected bodies, demanding reserved seats for women candidates.
Aditya N Raj of Vidyarthi JDS urged that 70 per cent of seats be reserved for Kannada-speaking students. Meanwhile, Gopi Rangaswamy and other ABVP representatives sought clear eligibility criteria for candidates, including a minimum attendance of 60 per cent and no pending FIRs or academic backlogs.
This drew objections from Keerthi Ganesh of NSUI and Vidyarthi JDS representatives, who argued that several students may have earned FIRs while participating in pro-Kannada demonstrations.
“It is not fair to bar a student based on attendance or an FIR. Everyone should have a fair chance,” they said. However, members of governing bodies in colleges and universities expressed concern that elections could affect academic progress. However, they said they would not object if the government frames clear rules to ensure that academic activities are not disrupted and that campuses remain orderly.
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NEET student hangs self in Rajasthan's Sikar
Jaipur (PTI): A student preparing for the NEET examination allegedly committed suicide by hanging himself in a rented room in Rajasthan's Sikar on Friday, police said.
According to the police, the student allegedly hanged himself from a ceiling fan using his sister's scarf while one sister was attending coaching classes and the other was in the bathroom.
He had appeared in the NEET UG exam 2026, which was cancelled due to paper leak, they said.
Udyog Nagar SHO Rajesh Kumar said that the deceased, identified as Pradeep Meghwal, was a resident of Kanika ki Dhani village in Jhunjhunu's Gudha Gaudji area.
He had been living in a rented room in Sikar's Jaldhari Nagar area with his two sisters while preparing for NEET over the last three years.
His elder sister later found him hanging and informed the landlord and police after bringing him down, officials said.
The SHO said the body was kept at SK Hospital mortuary, and a postmortem had not been conducted.
The student's father, Rajesh Kumar Meghwal, told police that Pradeep's NEET examination had gone well and the family was expecting him to score around 650 marks.
Former Rajasthan deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot expressed grief over the incident and linked it to anxiety among students after reports of irregularities and paper leaks in NEET 2026.
Pilot said repeated paper leak incidents and cancellation of examinations were affecting students' mental health and demanded a time-bound investigation and strict action against those responsible.
