The students of Jamia Millia Islamia, Delhi started an agitation on 12th October 2026 demanding a students union, with some students going on hunger strike.
On 26.10.2026 the Registrar of JMI issued a statement that elections to the students union will be held 15 days after the constitution of the students union is approved. However, since this statement was vague, and since no specific date for holding the elections was fixed therein, the students continued their agitation.
The administration made classes online, told the girl students to vacate the hostel, called the police, etc.
Thereafter on 29.10.2026 the JMI administration has issued another statement setting May 15, 2027, as the deadline for completing and implementing the university’s students’ union constitution, and holding elections within six weeks of the academic session beginning on July 16, 2027.
The university has also directed the revocation of disciplinary notices, suspensions, rustications and campus bans linked to the protest period. Offline classes have also been resumed.
The students have accepted this, and called off their agitation the same day.
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Explore Our Services →Have the students acted correctly in calling off their agitation ? Is this a victory or defeat for them ?
At first I thought they acted incorrectly. The statement of the JMI administration dated 29.10.2026 said that elections will be held within 6 weeks from 16th July 2027, i.e. at the end of August, which is 10 months from now. This seemed an inordinate time, and I thought this delay was a ruse, and mala fide.
But now I think that the students acted correctly, and the students have proved they are wiser than me.
Sun Tzu, the renowned Chinese military general and strategist, in his famous book ‘The Art of War’ writes that a good general does not always keep advancing. Sometimes he retreats i.e. he is flexible, and acts as the situation requires.
In my opinion, the students of JMI have proved themselves worthy disciples of Sun Tzu, and have rightly called off their stir. Considering the rigid attitude of the administration, continuing the agitation would only have resulted in further suffering to the students. Their studies were already being disturbed, the students on hunger strike could have fallen seriously ill or worse, the students could have been evicted from their hostels, the police was terrorizing them, etc. No doubt the elections will be held on a far off date, but at least the students union has been accepted in principle. Till the elections are held, those who had been on hunger strike may be treated by the students as an ad hoc committee representing them.
I regard the decision of the students to accept the administration’s statement of 29.10.2026 like the decision of Lenin to accept the Brest Litovsk Treaty of 3.3.1918. At that time the German army was advancing into Russia. Many Bolshevik leaders were against signing the treaty, because under it Russia had to give up 34% of its territory, including Belarus, Ukraine, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, etc, but Lenin said ” If you do not sign this, then you will sign the death warrant of the Soviet power in three weeks ”. Lenin knew that Russia had no army left, and the Germans could capture St Petersburg, the capital, whenever they wanted, and thus destroy the new Bolshevik government of Russia. So he persuaded the majority in the politburo to accept the Treaty.
Later, after Germany surrendered to the Allied Powers in November 1918, Russia recovered all the territories ceded by the Treaty.
So it is a victory for the students of JMI, not a defeat. Congratulations to them !
