Crackdown on student polls gets violent response

LUCKNOW: The Mayawati government in Uttar Pradesh on Monday has begun a crackdown on student leaders after sporadic incidents of violence at several places in the state.

The students protested against the state government's decision to put an indefinite ban on student union elections in UP universities and affiliated colleges.

Two universities have been shut down for an indefinite period. The Purvanchal University (Jaunpur) and about 345 colleges, affiliated to the university, have been closed down after protests by student leaders. Agra University and its affiliated colleges have been shut, an official spokesman said.

In Gonda, students damaged buses and indulged in brick-batting. Forty students were arrested for the incident. “Government won’t allow college, university campuses to become outlaws’ havens,” Mayawati said.