Jamia ends two-decade freeze on student polls, hunger strike called off

Jamia Millia Islamia has agreed to restore its Students’ Union through elections by the last week of August 2027, bringing a breakthrough in a prolonged campus agitation that saw students stage hunger strikes and demonstrations demanding the return of elected representation.

The protesting students recently called off their hunger strike after the university administration issued a formal communication setting deadlines for drafting and implementing the Students’ Union constitution and conducting elections.

According to the university's order issued recently the drafting, approval and implementation of the Jamia Millia Islamia Students’ Union constitution must be completed by May 15, 2027.

The administration has also stipulated that elections will be held within six weeks of the commencement of the next academic session, scheduled to begin on July 16, 2027. This places the proposed polls in the last week of August.

The decision marks a significant development for students who have been without an elected union for nearly two decades. Jamia last held Students’ Union elections in 2006, leaving successive batches without a formally elected body to represent their concerns.

Hunger strike ends after administration's assurance

The breakthrough came after the Registrar held discussions with protesting students and assured them of a definite timeline for restoring the union.

For weeks, students had demanded a formal written commitment from the university, arguing that assurances without clear deadlines would not resolve the uncertainty surrounding the revival of student representation.

Earlier proposals failed to break the deadlock, with protesters continuing their agitation until the administration issued an official order specifying the deadlines for the constitution and elections.

The latest communication has addressed one of the central demands of the movement, prompting students to withdraw their hunger strike.

University to revoke protest-related disciplinary action

In another major concession, the administration has agreed to revoke show-cause notices, disciplinary proceedings, rustications, suspensions and campus ban orders linked to participation in the protests.

The move addresses students' objections to punitive measures initiated during the agitation, which had become another major point of confrontation between the protesters and the university authorities.

The demonstrations had intensified in recent weeks, with students staging hunger strikes and protests near the administrative block. Security personnel were also deployed around campus gates as tensions escalated, affecting routine academic activities.

Offline classes to resume from November 9

Meanwhile, Jamia will resume offline classes and examinations from Monday, November 9, after the Diwali holidays, Registrar Professor Md Mahtab Alam Rizvi said.

Academic activities had been shifted online as tensions over the Students’ Union issue escalated on campus.

The move back to physical classes is expected to restore normal academic routines, particularly for students enrolled in programmes involving practical training, fieldwork and other activities that cannot be fully delivered through online teaching.

With the hunger strike withdrawn and the administration having committed to a definite electoral roadmap, the immediate focus will now be on implementing the order.

If carried out within the stipulated timeframe, the proposed August 2027 elections will end a 20-year gap in student representation at Jamia Millia Islamia and give students an opportunity to elect their own representatives once again.