Mumbai: After announcing to scrap the existing electoral rolls having 94,162 names and prepare a new list for its senate elections, the University of Mumbai (MU) has tentatively scheduled the polls on April 21, 2024, followed by the result announcement on April 24. The new timeline for election to 10 seats of the registered graduate constituency is likely to overlap with the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
Hence, the postponement is being eyed as a tactical move to help the ruling coalition avoid a possibly unfavourable outcome before the national vote. The student leaders have accused the varsity of delaying elections under pressure from the state government.
Anticipating that the process might take even longer than six months, a university official said,
MU senate polls and LS polls to coincide
“The registration period might be extended a few times. By the time of voting, general elections will be declared.” While the Election Commission of India is yet to announce the schedule of Lok Sabha elections, they are usually held between April and May.
The MU has been functioning without a full-fledged senate, its highest decision-making body, for more than a year after the term of the previous body ended in September 2022. The election for registered graduates was suspended two months ago following a complaint by BJP MLA Ashish Shelar who had alleged that the voter list had several duplicate entries among other alleged irregularities. Even as a three-member probe committee appointed by the MU refuted such claims, it recommended redoing the voter enrollment process, reasoning that the varsity had made Aadhaar mandatory for voter registration despite there being no such rule.
MU's revised plan for voter registration
As per the revised plan, the university has allotted a month's time from Thursday till November 30 for online voter registrations. Those who had signed up for the now cancelled voter list are also required to re-enroll their names though they won't have to repay the ₹20 registration fee. The university has done away with the Aadhaar mandate and instead asked would-be voters to provide any document as address proof.
Opposition accuses government of deferring elections
The opposition leaders have accused the government of deferring elections of various bodies across the state, worrying that loss in local polls might have a cascading effect on the upcoming Lok Sabha and assembly elections. While most of the other public universities in the state have completed their polls, the MU senate, which is perceived to be the most relevant for the state politics, is yet to commence its contest. In the last election, Yuva Sena, the youth-wing of the undivided Shiv Sena, had swept all the 10 seats for registered graduates. This time, both the Sena factions along with the student and youth wings aligned with other political parties are in the fray.
Sagar Devre, an aspiring candidate for the senate who had challenged the suspension of the election in the High Court, plans to take legal recourse again. “By conducting fresh registrations, the government is insulting the voters who were enrolled earlier.”
