Days after the Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) administration reinstated union elections, two students of Jamia Millia Islamia (JMI) started an indefinite hunger strike demanding the conduct of elections, which have not taken place since 2006. Meanwhile, the JMI administration has said that they have never said no to elections but have not received any written representation regarding the same.
On Tuesday. Ebin Basil, one of the two students on hunger strike, said, “We started our hunger strike yesterday (Monday) night for the reinstatement of the student union elections, which have not been held since 2006.”
The union was suspended in 2006 over concerns of discipline and violence. The students have said that they will strike indefinitely until their demand is met.
A university spokesperson said, “We have not received anything in writing from the students. The current administration has never said no to unions, but at the same time, past experiences have shown us that a system of electing department-wise representatives has served us better as the larger student union tends to get too politicised and lead to clashes.”
On October 10, the AMU administration agreed to reinstate elections after a 19-day hunger strike by students.
Published - October 14, 2026 12:08 am IST