Around 200-odd students wait impatiently outside their classrooms in Chennai High School – Kottur on Wednesday. The air is abuzz with excitement with a dash of tension as they wait to cast their votes for their compatriots who would represent them.
On the stage are boxes labelled SPL (School Pupil Leader) and ASPL (Assistant School Pupil Leader).
A glance at the rest of the school reveals that the students have clearly been busy campaigning as classroom walls, the multi-coloured jungle gym and even the school gates are full of posters — “Please vote for me. I will do so much,” and “My symbol is a lock. Vote for me”.
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According to Maheswari Kalpana K., headmistress of the school, this is the second year of elections. “I wanted my children to develop accountability and responsibility, and learn leadership skills,” she says. The ‘electorate’ comprised the 217 students of classes VI to X.
Four students are standing for the SPL position from Classes IX and X, while nine are contesting for the ASPL post.
The canvassing, which began last week, is no different from that seen in your average election with promises and claims flying thick. G. Dhivya, one of the contestants for the SPL post, is the daughter of a daily wage labourer and dreams of joining the police.
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M. Keerthana, from Class IX, was the ASPL last year. “I really want to ensure all the students come in on time. I helped reduce the number of latecomers last year, along with the SPL,” she says.
P. Vignesh’s main promise is to help all the students. He joined the fray on the last day, as his friends and classmates asked him to. “I want to motivate students who are absent for a long time,” he says, as he seeks votes, holding an A-4 size, handprinted paper with a ‘tumbler’ symbol.
At the end of the day, the winner is the aspiring cop: Dhivya won by a margin of 13 votes over Vignesh, whose initiatives the school would nevertheless hope to benefit from.