The debate seems hotter than the tea and coffee at the heart of it. Students of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) here are busy rousing passions over a Nestle outlet in the campus.
The issue - Nestle is an MNC.
A marathon 12-hour meeting, spearheaded by the Left-backed All India Student's Association (AISA) Thursday that continued well past midnight, called upon the students to "throw" the MNC out of the campus. Hundreds of students attended despite the cold weather.
AISA, which holds the president's post in the students union, has been in the forefront of a "struggle" to cleanse the JNU campus of MNCs, which it claims, are involved in "ideological brainwash" and "neo-colonisation".
The Union General Body Meeting passed a resolution - 544 against the eight opposing votes - demanding non-renewal of Nestle's contract to run the outlet in the campus, which expires Jan 31.
Many students feel the administration will now have to abide by the resolution.
"Our intention is to create a uniform environment in the campus where students from all over the country and from varied classes come. The ones who cannot afford MNC brands must not feel left out," Ravi Manohar, a student of M.Phil in sociology and a sympathiser of AISA's agenda, told IANS.
But consider this. A cup of coffee at the kiosk costs Rs.5 ($0.11), which is in fact lesser than the cost even in many downmarket restaurants where coffee is sold at Rs.6-8 per cup.
AISA's agenda is to replace the MNC's outlet with a 'dhaba' - an Indian-style roadside restaurant that will help create an "egalitarian" climate in the campus. This was one of the chief planks of AISA in the November 2004 JNU Students' Union election, which it won after nine years.
Opposing voices, though very feeble, nonetheless exist.
"MNCs are a part of our lifestyles now. We want their jobs and yet refuse to buy their products. How far is that feasible?" asked Jalees Nasiri, a final year M. Phil student of Arabic studies.
"In this day and age, if you want to be a world player, you can't just hide in a shell. We can't escape the fact that everything is commodified," Nasiri said.
The outlet itself has had no problems with its sales, according to the person running it, and did brisk business Friday as if nothing had happened.
"The ones who are agitating against us are our regular customers. When asked why they drink our coffee, they say 'our ire is against Nestle - the MNC, and not against the outlet itself'," the outlet in-charge said.
Ironically, one of the main grouses of the opponents of the kiosk is that it does not sell any competing brands.
"Nestle's refusal to sell competing brands, despite several requests from the students and the administration, shows arrogance and the classic monopolistic tendencies of a typical MNC," reads an AISA poster.
But even as supporters and opponents lock horns in JNU, many point out that MNCs are becoming visible in educational campuses across the country.
The canteen of the Symbiosis institute in Pune was decked up in October 2004 with sponsorship from soft-drink major PepsiCo. Christ College, Bangalore, has had a kiosk selling brands ranging from Nestle to Pepsi to Brittannia for nearly five years now.