25 September,2026 07:49 AM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. File Pic
The Maharashtra government has formed a 12-member expert committee to review the process for conducting student council elections in universities and affiliated colleges across the state.
The Higher and Technical Education Department announced the panel through a Government Resolution (GR) issued on Thursday. The committee has been tasked with examining the challenges involved in conducting student elections and recommending measures to make the process transparent, structured and student-focused.
The committee will be headed by Suhas Pednekar, former Vice-Chancellor of Mumbai University, while Prasad Karande, Registrar of Mumbai University, will serve as the Member Secretary.
The other members include former vice-chancellors, pro-vice-chancellors, registrars and deans from major public universities in Maharashtra, including Savitribai Phule Pune University and Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Marathwada University.
The panel will consult stakeholders and examine the existing framework before submitting its recommendations to the state government.
According to the GR, the expert panel has been asked to submit a comprehensive report to the state government within one month.
The committee will recommend mechanisms for conducting student council elections in a manner that keeps them focused on academic and student-related issues. It will also examine ways to prevent external political interference and commercial influence in the election process.
The panel will be expected to address implementation-related challenges and suggest a roadmap for conducting elections across universities and affiliated colleges.
The committee will also recommend measures for proportional representation of different groups in student councils.
The proposed framework will consider representation for women, Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST), Vimukta Jatis and Nomadic Tribes (VJNT), and Other Backward Classes (OBC).
It will also examine representation for students involved in the National Service Scheme (NSS), National Cadet Corps (NCC), sports and cultural activities.
The recommendations are intended to ensure broader participation in student councils and provide representation to students from different sections of higher educational institutions.
The committee will assess whether online and other digital systems can be used for various stages of the election process.
These stages include filing nominations, scrutiny of candidates, voting and grievance redressal. The panel will examine the feasibility of digital systems with the aim of making the process more streamlined and accessible.
The committee will also formulate guidelines for managing student council funds, including rules related to budgeting, expenditure and auditing.
In addition, it will design training modules for newly elected student representatives. The modules will focus on their responsibilities, duties and rights after they take office.
Mumbai University will facilitate meetings of the expert committee, which may be conducted online, offline or in a hybrid format, according to the GR.
The state government said the initiative was aimed at establishing a transparent and structured system for democratic participation by students in higher educational institutions.
Under the Maharashtra Public Universities Act, 2016, and the Uniform Statutes issued on October 26, 2018, provisions exist for establishing student councils and conducting elections to them.
The decision to form the committee followed a proposal submitted by the Director of Higher Education, Pune, on September 23, 2026.
The GR said the committee had been constituted to address challenges in implementing student council elections, consult relevant stakeholders and prepare a roadmap for conducting the elections.
(With inputs from IANS)
