The rise in the number of students participating in politics at an institutional level might have brought about a common consensus among the people of India – that students should remain students and not interfere in mainstream politics. In the wake of the dismal state of affairs in the country right now, there is an urgent need to bring about a change in the political paradigm.
When people like Jignesh Mevani have to raise funds for their election campaign but the candidates of some of the richest parties spend their money extravagantly, it is utterly unfair.
Across the country, there have been uprisings, especially among students. Every possible effort has been made by the political leaders of our country to put down such uprisings. A few students from JNU (the likes of Umar Khalid, Kanhaiya Kumar and Shehla Rashid) have raised their voices against injustice. Though it might not matter to the rest of the country, to me, it shows that there is injustice being done to a section of our society.
Another thing that the Parliament and the Judiciary must take into consideration is the unavailability of young leaders in mainstream politics. Politics can become a proper career option and it would happen if the aforementioned institutions tried to promulgate laws that enabled seats for MPs below 35 years of age. The age of retirement also must be reduced for MPs to include younger leaders.
There have been a few episodes where young people rose to fame overnight – for example, Hardik Patel and Jignesh Mevani. Unfortunately, this is the only silver lining in the country right now. Hardik had brought up issues of casteism. The presence of an issue helps provide the platform for persons with political insights to rise to fame.
I look forward to a time when students wouldn’t be scared to join politics due to sanghis and vahinis. Students are taught Political Science in schools and colleges but are precluded from bringing their learning into practice by certain decisive forces.