JNUSU poll: Ideological clashes define presidential contest

The race for the post of President in this year’s Jawaharlal Nehru University Students’ Union (JNUSU) elections features strong contenders from the three leading blocs — the ABVP, NSUI, and the Left Unity alliance.

Vikas Patel (ABVP)

Vikas Patel, the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) candidate, hails from Maharajganj district in Uttar Pradesh. He completed his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Korean Language from JNU and also holds a Master’s degree in Political Science. Currently a third-year PhD research scholar at the university, he has also cleared the National Eligibility Test (NET).

Associated with the ABVP since 2014, Patel contested the Councillor elections from the School of Language in 2016 and 2017. Over time, he has served as Unit Secretary of ABVP, JNU, and now holds the positions of Vibhag Sanyojak at JNU and Joint Secretary of ABVP, Delhi.

His campaign focuses on organisational experience, student welfare and campus accountability. He has underscored values of nationalism, inclusivity, and support for academic reforms that address the needs of diverse student communities.

Vikash Bishnoi (NSUI)

Representing the National Students’ Union of India (NSUI), Vikash Bishnoi hails from Phalodi, a rural border district in Rajasthan. He is currently pursuing his Ph.D. at the School of International Studies, JNU, and has previously studied at Jamia Millia Islamia.

Vikash’s campaign seeks to break what he calls the “Left–Right binary” in campus politics, which, according to him, has long excluded the real and oppressed voices of students. He has been sharply critical of Left unions, accusing them of betrayal in collective fights against the dilution of GSCASH, the implementation of the National Education Policy, UGC draft regulations, and fund cuts. His campaign also stands against the privatisation of higher education, the curtailment of student activism, and the assault on democracy. Vikash positions himself as a strong voice for marginalised and progressive students who want a politics beyond ideological binaries.

Aditi Mishra (Left Unity – AISA)

Aditi Mishra, contesting from the Left Unity panel as an AISA activist, is a Ph.D. scholar at the Centre for Comparative Politics and Political Theory, School of International Studies. She hails from Benaras, Uttar Pradesh, where her engagement with student activism began during her undergraduate years at Banaras Hindu University. In 2017, she took part in the BHU protests that successfully challenged patriarchal hostel curfew timings.

Later, at Pondicherry University, she was active in campus protests against saffronisation, arbitrary fee hikes, and in solidarity with the anti-CAA movement. Her PhD research focuses on gendered violence and women’s resistance movements in Uttar Pradesh since 2012.

As an Internal Complaints Committee representative at JNU, Aditi worked to make the body more transparent and approachable for students. Her campaign is centred on gender justice, democratic accountability, and the defence of JNU’s progressive and inclusive culture.