The Karnataka government will soon issue a Government Order laying down rules for the revival of student elections in colleges and universities, with political party influence barred from the electoral process, Medical Education Minister Sharan Prakash Patil said on Tuesday, August 25.
Under the proposed rules, students affiliated with political party wings such as NSUI and ABVP will not be allowed to contest the elections. Candidates found to be members of any student political organisation will be disqualified, Patil said at a press conference.
Such restrictions are broadly in line with the Lyndoh Committee’s recommendations regarding student elections and which are followed by universities such as Hyderabad University and Jawaharlal Nehru University.
The first phase of the elections in Karnataka will be held in pre-university and degree colleges, followed by a second phase covering universities across the state.
Patil said students contesting the elections would be permitted to speak only on student and education-related issues and would not be allowed to promote or impose the ideology of any political party, either during the elections or after being elected.
“Students cannot promote or impose any ideology during elections or even after becoming leaders,” he said.
Campuses and the elections will also be off-limits to outsiders and members of political student wings, who will not be allowed to enter campuses to make announcements or deliver speeches, Patil said.
The government’s move follows its decision to revive student union elections as announced in the 2026 State Budget. Former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah had announced that elections would be conducted in colleges and universities, ending a 37-year ban imposed in 1989.
In April, Patil, along with then Higher Education Minister M.C. Sudhakar, held a closed-door meeting with representatives of student organisations, including AIDSO, AISA, SFI, ABVP and NSUI, as well as representatives from colleges, universities and parents.
Patil said the government had considered suggestions made during the consultations while framing the rules for the elections.