Morcha warns of ‘historic showdown’ if Senate election not notified by Nov 25

The Panjab University (PU) campus today witnessed the 21st straight day of an unrelenting student sit-in, as protesters continued to occupy the lawns outside the Vice-Chancellor’s office round the clock, despite the onset of winter. A leader of the PU Bachao Morcha, Avtar Singh, warned of a “historic showdown” if the Senate election schedule was not notified by November 25.

To beat the night chill, students huddled under blankets and quilts donated by gurdwaras and civil-society groups, vowing to fight “till the last mile”. Fresh support poured in today from Punjabi singer Harf Cheema, several Nihang representatives from the Qaumi Insaaf Morcha, and leaders from political, social, religious and farmer groups. Civil-society organisations continued 24x7 langar at the protest site.

The Tribune had broken the PU overhaul story on November 1, setting off a political storm in Punjab and Chandigarh. The Centre was forced to withdraw its restructuring move within a week after issuing four notifications between October 30 and November 7. However, the campus has remained on the boil ever since. On November 10, the PU saw its largest youth protest in recent memory as thousands breached barricades to enter the campus despite a massive police clampdown and sealed inter-state borders.

Now, the agitation has entered a high-stakes countdown to November 25 — the deadline the PU Bachao Morcha has set for the formal notification of the Senate election schedule as per the pre-October 30 democratic structure.

Even as the morcha continues to insist that the ongoing agitation has “nothing to do with the long-standing inter-state disputes” between Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh, the issue has snowballed into an inter-state flashpoint. The recent Northern Zonal Council (NZC) meeting, chaired by Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Faridabad, saw Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann staking Punjab’s claim over the PU, declaring it the state’s historical and constitutional right, while accusing Haryana and Himachal Pradesh of making “nefarious backdoor attempts” to seize a stake. Mann’s stand hardened political battle lines even as Shah advised Punjab and Haryana to resolve the matter through a mutual dialogue.

What began as a resistance to the Centre’s restructuring attempt has now morphed into a turf war of political one-upmanship, with almost every major anti-BJP force rallying behind the morcha — and simultaneously targeting one another. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) have locked horns over their past actions on the PU, river-water disputes and the now-repealed farm laws, accusing each other of “betraying Punjab”. Congress leaders continue visiting the dharna site, slamming police action and calling for immediate Senate elections. Haryana-based groups, meanwhile, insist the PU is not a Punjab-only institution and oppose what they describe as “politicisation of the university”.

Punjab AAP general secretary Baltej Pannu said the Akali Dal was now pretending to be the “saviour” of the PU even though, when in power, it had formally given a consent in writing to the Union Government for converting the university into a Central body. He said an official government communication existed as proof that the then SAD-BJP government had conveyed it had “no objection” if the PU were made a Central institution.

Students today reiterated that the Punjab CM’s strong intervention at the NZC had boosted their morale, but also underlined that their struggle was independent of inter-state politics. “This movement is to restore PU’s democratic structure — not to fuel Punjab-Haryana rivalry,” student leaders said.

The anger against the PU administration surged again today, with the morcha accusing it of running a “vilification campaign” and using “pressure tactics” by registering a fresh FIR against students for the November 10 rally — a day when the police had sealed all Chandigarh entry points, detained several protesters and used force to block the march. The students alleged that instead of ensuring justice or cancelling earlier cases, the PU authorities have attempted to “sabotage a peaceful protest”.

Meanwhile, the PU administration is learnt to have apprised both the Ministry of Education and the Vice-President Secretariat of the intensifying situation. However, sources indicated that no headway had been achieved so far to break the deadlock.

With just three days left for the November 25 deadline, the countdown has begun for a possible campus-wide shutdown on November 26.

WHAT NEXT

Nov 25: Deadline for formal notification of Senate election schedule.

If no notification: Total shutdown of PU on Nov 26

Massive mobilisation expected; agitation to expand to all PU-affiliated colleges in Punjab.

Political pressure on Centre and PU Administration likely to escalate.