Kerala University syndicate election witnesses protest over counting of votes

Thiruvananthapuram, Jul 29 (PTI) The Left leaning student and teachers' organisations protested in front of the Kerala University here on Monday after the election held to the 12-member syndicate, over an altercation with the Vice Chancellor on counting of votes.

The SFI workers staged a sit-in protest in front of the main building of the university, while a section of activists clashed with the police at the gate of the institution.

The election to the syndicate was held on Monday morning, for which 98 senate members voted.

However, the votes of 15 members were not counted as directed by the Kerala High Court, Vice Chancellor Mohanan Kunnummal said.

"Out of the 12 seats, three members were elected without any opposition. The election was held today for nine. And in the interim counting, six CPI(M) members, two BJP members, and one Congress member were elected," Kunnummal said.

It was the first time in the history of the university that a BJP member was elected to the syndicate.

However, if the court allows the counting of the 15 votes, the results may change.

"If the court says that the 15 votes in question are invalid, then this result will prevail. But if not, the result can change because out of these 15, nine are from the SFI, five are from the BJP, and one is from the KSU. So sometimes, the result can change," Kunnummal added.

The VC said his initial position was not to count the votes at all, as the court was yet to decide on the validity of the votes of the 15 senate members.

The HC, in the afternoon, gave a direction to count the 83 votes and said the decision on the rest will be taken later.

The university and the political parties expect the court verdict on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Kunnummal alleged that the tyre of his car was punctured by some unknown people during the protest.

The Left organisations protested before the university after the election, demanding counting of votes. However, the VC maintained that the decision would be taken only after the court's decision.

The nomination of members to the senate by the chancellor and other matters were pending before the Kerala High Court. PTI RRT RRT ROH