Overview
- The Higher Education Minister announced the decision on Monday, October 5, and the department published a compact timetable that requires colleges to issue notifications on October 7 and accept nominations on October 9.
- Voting and counting are set for October 15, with oath-taking for winners on October 16, and a ‘Why I Stand For’ meeting scheduled the day before polling.
- The official rules set clear candidate limits: undergraduates must be 17–22 and postgraduates up to 25, candidates need 75% classroom attendance, no academic arrears, and no prior criminal or pending disciplinary records.
- Campaign controls include a maximum expenditure of Rs 5,000 per candidate, a ban on political party funding, no printed posters or pamphlets, a prohibition on false or AI‑manipulated social media content, and penalties for violating rules.
- The state says it will follow the Supreme Court’s 2005 guidance and J. M. Lyngdoh Committee recommendations and has planned significant security measures; the move restores polls last held in 2017 after suspension for campus violence, Cyclone Titli and the pandemic and could curb mass pre‑election mobilisation while testing enforcement of the new limits.