Are Campuses Being Depoliticised? IITs, ABVP and Student Politics | Hafta

Abhinandan Sekhri says he has noticed “a disincentivization of student politics” in recent years, and asks whether insulating campuses such as the IITs and IIMs from it is a good idea. Prof Abha Dev Habib of Miranda House argues that student politics is an “integral part of getting education”, with violence the only negative. She asks who is bringing violence to campuses, saying it is “systematically done” and that those who do not want questions raised are the ones who induce it. She points to JNU, where “nobody has been caught ever”, and to Jamia. Asking whether the absence of politics is “peace at all”, she says Gen Z has shown that “they are not indifferent and that has brought hope to us.” Sudipto Mondal says students will brawl regardless: “I’d rather that they brawl over politics.” Rinchen Norbu, who studied at IIT Madras, calls the idea that IITs are sheltered from politics “a complete misconception”. Sudipto further argues that where campuses lack political processes, right-wing politics tends to fill the gap. In the South, he says the ABVP often operates under other names. Campuses tend to overlook it, he says, because it arrives as nationalists who do things like blood donation drives. He adds that the Congress’s student wing was just as reactionary in its day, saying “the Congress is the original right-wing party of India”. Tune in to the full conversation: https://www.newslaundry.com/2026/10/0... Subscribe to Newslaundry: https://pages.razorpay.com/nlsm Get your hands on the Dimaagi Naxal merch: https://www.newslaundry.com/dimaagi-n... Join the NL-TNM Book Club: https://www.newslaundry.com/book-club Join us on WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029Va61... Download the accessible Newslaundry app: https://www.newslaundry.com/download-app Follow and engage with us on social media: Facebook:   / newslaundry   Twitter:   / newslaundry   Instagram:   / newslaundry