A decade has passed since politics was banned in schools and colleges. This is perhaps the right time to review the decision and assess whether it had led to some benefits to the society. I personally feel that banning politics has only helped caste and religious organisations to influence students. We need to assess what benefits students have accrued over the years because of the ban.
Kerala was a model state for the nation with regard to secularism and social progress, but now the same state is being made into a battlefield by religious forces. Years ago, student politics had led to many social changes and people like me entered mainstream politics through student political movements. I still retain the mind of a student political leader. Student political uprisings have fought problems faced by the student community and the changes brought by such movements cannot be ignored. I strongly believe that student politicians should have the ability to bring to light deficiencies of mainstream political leaders.
Perhaps deviations in the focus of student politicians could have led to the restriction and subsequent ban on student politics. However, all those issues can be solved. To mitigate a problem, it is not wise to create another bigger problem.
When politics was banned from campuses, religious and caste-based organisations took their place and unfortunately there are no laws in place to control these forces. While many such community and religious organisations have been helping development of the society, responsible organisations have restricted their sphere of influence to a particular point. Those who transcend this thin line, blatantly, are not doing any good to the society.
Unfortunately, many organisations have a dubious intent and break established norms with impunity. Such organisations only help to infuse the concept of religion and community in young children. It is nice to create a sense of community in children, but that should not lead to fanaticism. We need to be careful against such a trend because it would not augur well for the secular framework in the state.
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