Students' union election held at Calcutta Medical College & Hosp

Kolkata: Students' union election was held at the Calcutta Medical College and Hospital (CMCH) on Thursday without the involvement

of the medical college authority. There was no administrative approval given by the authorities to hold the election.

A section of MBBS students who were continuing an agitation at the CMCH for some time to meet their certain demands, including the college union election and later organised a hunger strike for 11 days, decided to hold the election on Thursday.

The election was carried out by the students at the college auditorium. Students were seen queued up to cast their votes. The election has no legal right as the college administration did not take part in the process. Four intellectuals who supported the students movement supervised the election process and videography was also carried out to maintain transparency.

Some of the MBBS students who took part in hunger strike for 11 days and lifted it on December 19 decided to hold a students union election on their own without any involvement of the medical college authorities. The nominations of the candidates were filed online till Wednesday morning.

The students initially refused to withdraw the hunger strike as the college authorities did not agree to hold elections. A meeting was scheduled to take place between the senior health officials and the representatives of the agitating students on the sixth day of the hunger strike. Health officials however cancelled the meeting saying that the discussion would take place only after the hunger strike is withdrawn.

Five undergraduate medical students started a hunger strike at the CMCH to meet their certain demands. One fell ill and was admitted to the critical care unit and later released. Two more students joined the hunger strike later.