We all know how intense the student union elections in Chennai’s arts and science colleges can be. Though girls are not usually associated with elections in coed colleges, here is Rebecca Catharene, who has broken gender stereotypes in this regard — she is the first woman student chairperson in Madras Christian College’s history, according to records.
The third year BCA student speaks to DC at length about what the post means to her, and how she wants to do justice to it, and her aspirations.
“I never expected that I would get such a privilege to make history,” starts Rebecca adding, “According to records, girl students had contested in elections previously, but I am the first one to have won!” Speaking about what instigated her to take part in it, Rebecca says that she was not confident initially, but her friends encouraged her to contest. “Before the elections, I was very tense. But, when lots of boys supported me unexpectedly, I got inspired,” she muses.
Describing the election process to us, she says, “In our college, it is held at the end of every academic year — second year UG students and first year PG students are eligible to contest in it.
The election for chairperson and general secretary is an open one, and our election commission performs the counting. It was a close battle this year and I won the election by a narrow margin of only 33 votes.”
The 19-year-old also says that she had to overcome many challenges to win it — “I had an equal number of supporters and haters. It was a hard time for me before the elections, as I had to continue to work, tolerating the hurtful and discouraging words from some students. But this part of my life taught me a lot of important lessons.”
Now that she is in a position of responsibility, she states that she is determined to do justice to her post — “My cabinet and I have planned many interesting initiatives in academics, sports, and cultural activities and are actively working towards our goals. As the student union, we would not only focus on improving our own portfolios, but also do what is needed for the college.”
Given her love to lead from the front, we query her about political aspirations. She replies, “I don’t have plans to step into politics as of now. But, initially, I didn’t have plans to even contest college elections. Life is not predictable. So, if I am going to lean towards politics, I should be ready for that battle too!”
