Mumbai students find power in politics

College students are queuing up to join political parties so that they can confront college authorities with their problems better.

 Over 48,000 students from 150 Mumbai colleges recently joined the National Students Union of India (NSUI), the students’ wing of the Indian National Congress. The Maharashtra Navnirman Sena’s students’ wing also bagged a base of 40,000 students from colleges across Mumbai in its three-day drive in January.

The newest members joining these parties are mainly 18- or 19-year-old undergraduates with no political background. The youth admit they know very little about the ideologies of these parties. Md Samsudin, general secretary of NSUI from SM Shetty College, Powai, says, “Many colleges demand huge amounts of money from students as donation. A few manage to get help from political parties but those who don’t, drop the idea of higher education. I don’t know much about the Congress, but I wish to help poor students.”
Some aim to deal with the college management directly using their political reach.  A new member of the Maharashtra Navanirman Vidyarthi Sena says, “With the backing of a party, I can speak to the management with confidence.”

Another reason the youth keen on politics is because they are fed up of running from pillar to post to get their work done. Girish Kamath, student of KJ Somaiya College and a member of NSUI, says, “Your work is done smoothly if you have political, police or bureaucratic backing. I want to be powerful to ensure that everyone is treated equally.”