The Students' Federation of India (SFI) is an Indian left-wing student organisation politically aligned to the ideologies of independence, democracy and socialism but is often labelled as the student wing of CPI(M). Currently, V. P. Sanu and Mayukh Biswas are elected as the All India President and General Secretary, respectively.
History
The origin of Indian students movement in its organised form can be traced to the formation of All India Students’ Federation (AISF) on 12 August 1936 to further anti-imperialist politics. Since the 1940s–1950s, several ideological debates fathomed within the AISF, regarding the analysis of the Indian society, the nature of the Indian state and its attitude towards students. A strong body of opinion emerged as to oppose the existing predominant view within the AISF, to cooperate and compromise with the nation's ruling classes towards a so-called progressive end. They called for militancy in student movements, aimed towards a progressive reorientation of the existing education system. As political differences between dissenting factions within the AISF developed, added with their negligence on student issues, it split into several local organizations which started working independently. In 1970, delegates from such organizations held a conference in Thiruvananthapuram to form a new national students' organisation. The All India Conference was held from 27 to 30 December, and resulted in formation of Students' Federation of India. The elected leaderships from the first conference included C. Baskaran, (first President), Biman Bose (first General Secretary), Shyamal Chakraborty, Baldev Singh, Babu Bharadwaj, Ranjan Goswami, Manik Sarkar, N. Ram, Subhash Chakraborty, Umendra prasad Singh, P Madhu and Shaktidhar Das.
Presence and structure
The Students' Federation of India in 202021 has 24 functioning state committees. SFI over the years have lead student unions in various universities across India, including:
Activities
Protest and demands
SFI has protested against the National Education Policy, 2019, hike in fees, and under-representation of reserved students in IITs.
SFI members took part and organised multiple Citizenship Amendment Act protests in 2019. The SFI marched to the Parliament in one such protest. Further, the SFI even approached the Supreme Court against the act.
During the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown in India, SFI distributed sanitary napkins to female students in West Bengal and demanded their inclusion in essential commodities in Himachal Pradesh. SFI set up COVID-19 helpline numbers in various states to help stranded students. To combat misinformation and reach out to the migrant labourers in various places, SFI launched a campaign named "My dear friend" where verified information from government sources are translated into various Indian languages and circulated through social media. Online art festivals, lecture series and online classes were also organised by various SFI committee's. SFI also produced face masks and hand sanitisers.
SFI had won court cases for regulating private coaching centres in India. They also had movements against the delay in fellowships and scholarships for university students.
SFI and DYFI activists jointly posted 1.5 lakh (150,000) letters to the Prime Minister's office after a first information report (FIR) for sedition was lodged against 49 celebrities who condemned lynchings of Muslims, Dalits, and other minorities in India.
SFI approached Supreme Court seeking directions to provide universal free vaccination to all citizens of India and to waive off the goods and service tax levied on the import of the oxygen concentrators used for personal use during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Red Volunteers and other social works
SFI along with DYFI, the youth wing of Communist Party of India (Marxist), runs Red Volunteers, Sramajibi Canteen and involves in various social works.
Women in SFI
From 27 to 29 January 2017, the 5th All India Girls Convention was held at Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh and it elected a 23-member team of girls’ sub-committee.