ABVP won 3 of the 4 posts by a huge margin, leaving only 1 post to NSUI, the student wing of the Congress.
– Shri Ram Shaw
New Delhi, Sept 13: Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) – the RSS inspired nationalist students organisation has swept the Delhi University Students’ Union (DUSU) elections winning all the three prominent posts with spectacular margins. ABVP candidates won the post of president, vice president and joint secretary with a huge margin, while the candidate of Congress-affiliated National Students’ Union of India (NSUI) bagged the post of secretary.
The results of the DUSU polls held in two phases on Thursday, was declared today and it saw a turnout of 39.9 per cent for these four posts amidst minor incidents of violence. The issues that topped the agenda of various parties contesting this year included their stand on accommodation for all, demand for compact campus and infrastructural development among others.
The post of president was won by Akshit Dahiya of ABVP, who got 29,685 votes. NSUI candidate Chetan Tyagi got 10,646 votes. Damini Ken of All India Students’ Association (AISA) garnered third position with 5886 votes. A total of 5495 students used the option of NOTA.
The post of vice president has been won by Pradip Tanwar of ABVP with 19,858 votes. Aftab Alam of AISA bagged second position with 8217 votes whereas Ankit Bharati of NSUI remained on third spot with 7284 votes. 7879 students chose the option of NOTA. The post of secretary was won by Ashish Lamba of NSUI, who got 20,934 votes. ABVP candidate Yogit Rathi bagged the second place with 18,881 votes. A total of 6570 students used the option of NOTA. The post of joint secretary was won by Shivangi Kharwal of ABVP, who got 17,234 votes. Abhishek Chaprana of NSUI got 14,320 votes. A total of 7695 students used the option of NOTA.
DUSU is the representative body of the students from most colleges and faculties of the varsity. The polls have been keenly contested over decades and are seen as a stepping stone to party politics.
“NSUI’s efforts were confined to banners only. They were unaware of ground realities. We will remain among the students throughout the year and fulfill our promises. We did not consider them a challenge, since they did not talk of real issues,” Akshit Dahiya, the newly-elected president told Organiser after the poll results were declared.
Celebrations broke out with bursting of crackers and loud cheering at the counting venue as the results were announced. The ABVP supporters lifted their candidates on shoulders and posed for pictures flashing the victory sign.
After the win, the winning candidates were showered with rose and marigold garlands. Their supporters danced to drum beats and took out a march to celebrate the victory amid tight security. The winning candidates thanked the students of the varsity for giving them a clear mandate.
Expressing her thoughts on her party’s performance in DUSU polls, Kawalpreet Kaur, president, All India Students’ Association (AISA) told Organiser, “ It was a very low turnout this year. We tried our best and lost by a marginal margin. We are looking into the reasons for our defeat. Anyway, we’ll always be there with DU students in any circumstances.”
Claiming that the vote share of AISA has increased compared to previous years, Kaur added, “As I am a woman I am going to work hard towards making the campus safe for women and increase their facilities.”
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