Congress-backed NSUI's big comeback in Delhi University polls, wins President post

The DUSU poll results are out and NSUI and ABVP each won two key seats in Delhi University's long-delayed student elections, reshaping the power dynamics in DUSU amid tight security and a fierce campaign.

In Short

• DUSU election results declared after two-month delay following court stay
• NSUI secures President and Joint Secretary roles
• ABVP wins Vice President and Secretary posts

In a closely contested Delhi University Students' Union (DUSU) election, the National Students' Union of India (NSUI) and the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) won two seats each. Originally scheduled for September 28, the announcement of results was delayed to address concerns about defacement during the campaign.

While NSUI claimed the President and Joint Secretary posts, ABVP secured victories for Vice President and Secretary.

NSUI’s Raunak Khatri emerged as President, and Lokesh Choudhary took the Joint Secretary role. On the other hand, ABVP’s Bhanu Pratap Singh was elected Vice President, and Mitravinda Karanwal won the Secretary position.

The Congress-backed NSUI made a strong comeback in the Delhi University Students’ Union (DUSU) elections, ending a seven-year drought. Currently, ABVP holds a majority in the DUSU, but this year’s results slightly shifted the power dynamic.

The victory, celebrated with spirited slogans and cheers by NSUI members, marked a significant revival of the party’s influence in the student body after years of domination by the RSS-affiliated ABVP.

This year’s polls were fiercely contested, with 21 candidates battling for four key posts. The elections highlighted ideological divisions, pitting the ABVP, NSUI, and a Left-aligned coalition of AISA and SFI against one another in a high-stakes race.

LONG-DELAYED DUSU POLL RESULTS FINALLY OUT

The election results came nearly two months after the polling date, following a Delhi High Court stay order addressing election-related grievances. Counting began early at Delhi University’s North Campus under tight security.

Delhi Police deployed three-layer barricading at the counting centre, ensuring order. Strict rules were also implemented to prevent celebrations on campus post-results.

DUSU POLLS CONTENDERS: A HEATED RACE

The elections featured a fierce battle between the ABVP, NSUI, and the Left-aligned coalition of the All India Students’ Association (AISA) and Students’ Federation of India (SFI).

• The President’s seat saw Raunak Khatri (NSUI) (20207 votes) competing against ABVP’s Rishabh Chaudhary (18868 votes) and AISA’s Saavy Gupta.
• For Vice President, Bhanu Pratap Singh (ABVP) (24166 votes) outdid NSUI’s Yash Nandal (15404 votes) and AISA’s Ayush Mondal.
• The Secretary post was clinched by Mitravinda Karanwal (ABVP) (16703 votes), defeating NSUI’s Namrata Jeph Meena (15236 votes) and SFI’s Anamika K.
• Lokesh Choudhary (NSUI) 21975 votes) secured Joint Secretary, ahead of ABVP’s Aman Kapasia (15249 votes) and SFI’s Sneha Aggarwal.

Despite the High Court’s directive against defacement, campaign posters and pamphlets littered roads across the campus.

VOTE COUNTS FOR ALL DUSU ELECTION CANDIDATES

Professor Satyapal Singh, the Chief Election Officer appointed for DUSU elections 2024-25, said that this time 8 candidates were in the fray for the post of President, 5 for the post of Vice President, 4 for the post of Secretary and 4 for the post of Joint Secretary.

Giving detailed information, he said that out of the total 50689 votes received for the post of President, Aniket Mandke got a total of 2028, Badi U Zaman got 844, Pinky got 854, Rishabh Chaudhary got 18868, Raunak Khatri got 20207, Savi Gupta got 2695, Sheetal got 407 and Shivam Maurya got 880 votes.

He said that 3906 students chose NOTA for the post of President.

Giving a detailed account of the total 50918 votes received for the post of Vice President -- Ayush Mandal got a total of 3650 votes, Banashree Das got 2339 votes, Bhanu Pratap Singh got 24166 votes, Robin Singh got 948 votes, Yash Nandal got 15404 votes, and 4411 votes came for NOTA.

Professor Satyapal Singh said that a total of 50874 votes were received for the post of Secretary, out of which Adityan MA got 3358 votes, Mitravinda Karnawal got 16703 votes, Namrata Jeff got 15236 votes and Sneha Agarwal got a total of 8806 votes, and 6771 students voted for NOTA.

He said that a total of 50977 votes were received for the post of Joint Secretary, out of which Aman Kapasiya got 15249 votes, Anamika K got 5676 votes, Anjana Sukumaran got 2417 votes, Lokesh Choudhary got 21975 votes, and 5660 votes came for NOTA.

(With inputs from Sushant Mehra)