Coordinator of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement and Director of the July Shaheed Smriti Foundation, Sarjis Alam, has said that universities are not a place for partisan politics, they want to create representatives, not factional leaders.
Speaking at a student assembly at Hajee Mohammad Danesh Science and Technology University, Dinajpur, on Thursday, he emphasized the need for student union elections at universities instead of partisan politics.
He said: "Over the past 16 years, leaders have become disconnected from the ground realities. We don’t want that kind of leader.”
The assembly, titled "Roles of Revolutionary Students and People to Uphold the July Revolution and Rebuild the State," took place on Thursday at Noor Hossain Hall grounds, where Alam advocated for annual student union elections as a means to foster genuine leadership and accountability.
“If you want to develop political awareness and leadership in Northern Bengal, hold student union elections every year,” he urged, saying that appointed leaders often prioritize pleasing those who appointed them rather than addressing student concerns.
He highlighted the need for strong, grassroots leadership, saying: "If we want leaders like Maulana Bhasani, Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy, and Sher-e-Bangla A.K. Fazlul Huq to emerge, student union elections are essential.”
Sarjis also emphasized accountability in student politics: “An elected representative is responsible to the students who voted for them and must answer to them. Failing to do so would result in losing future elections, which is how it should be.”
Concluding his address, he said: “If I can’t walk on foot and need showdowns to move around, then I am no longer part of the common student community.”