New Delhi, Oct. 28: It will be a first of sorts when four students from the Northeast, members of the newly-formed Forum People’s Rights, will contest the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) students’ union elections as Independent candidates.

Their aim is to bring into focus various problems plaguing the strife-torn region.

The elections are slated for early next month.

The forum could not field a full panel as it reportedly failed to convince its other members to join the fray.

The contestants include convenor of the forum, Moses Khardithai, contesting for the office of joint secretary of the union. While Soihianlung Dangmei is vying for the councillor’s post from the School of Social Sciences, Somei is in the fray for the post from Law and Governance and Ginlalmuan from the School of Languages.

The forum was constituted and registered on October 25 by students from the region with an initial membership of 70. There are more than 450 students from the eight northeastern states on the campus, all members of the Northeast Students’ Forum (NESF).

The new forum may raise issues like Naga talks and plight of Chakma refugees if there is an agreement among the members. “There are several platforms formed by students from the Northeast but none of them addresses political issues, though our priority is campus development,” said spokesperson Yorongo Nganung.

The forum representatives will also raise issues for physically-challenged students. Campus rights of students from the Northeast is also a priority area.