Maoist affiliated ANNISU-R padlocked the school of science and engineering, medical college in Dhulikhel, Kavre, and school of management in Kathmandu from March 2 after a student close to Nepal Students´ Union (NSU) was elected president of the students´ welfare council on March 1. [break]
ANNISU-R withdrew the strike on Wednesday after the university management decided to investigate into the election procedure but NSU again padlocked the school of science and engineering.
KU doesn´t recognize political organizations in its colleges but three panels of students close to NSU, ANNISU-R and CPN-UML affiliated ANNFSU had contested the elections in which Krishna Prasad Pokharel, close to NSU, and Anup Luitel, close to ANNISU-R, were tied at 19 votes for president.
The students had agreed upon the election regulations that required a lucky draw in case of a tie before beginning the process. The students then reportedly agreed for re-election but the management went ahead and Pokharel´s name was picked in the lucky draw held in absence of representatives of both the candidates. “Even Pokharel was for re-election and he accepted the result only after he was declared winner through the lucky draw,” Luitel claimed.
ANNISU-R then padlocked the university demanding to scrap the election but the management -- which had even issued a notice after the ANNISU-R´s strike claiming that the election was fair and valid -- decided on Wednesday to uphold the election result and form a committee to hold talks with the agitating group asking them to end the strike.
"They cannot investigate a fair election process that was conducted as per the regulations," argued Pokharel accusing the management of bowing to ANNISU-R pressure.
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