Left alliance leads in all 4 posts in Jawaharlal Nehru University student poll

Anshita Mehra

New Delhi, March 24

The Left alliance has secured significant leads over the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh-affiliated Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) in all four central panel seats in the Jawaharlal Nehru University’s Student Union elections.

According to early poll trends around 9.20 pm, candidates from the Left alliance, comprising the All-India Students’ Association (AISA), Democratic Students’ Federation (DSF), Students’ Federation of India (SFI) and All-India Students’ Federation (AISF), is leading in all four key positions.

According to the early poll trends, Left’s Dhananjay Kumar is leading the tally for the president’s post with 1,761 votes followed by ABVP’s Umesh C Ajmeera with 1,367 votes. For the vice-president’s post, the ABVP is giving a tough competition to Left’s candidate Avijit Ghosh, who is currently leading with 1,574 votes, whereas ABVP’s Deepika Sharma trailed with 1,185 votes.

For the position of general secretary, BAPSA’s Priyanshi Arya, supported by the Left, secured 1,920 votes, leaving behind ABVP candidate Arjun Anand with 1,578 votes.

The race for the joint secretary post witnessed intense competition, with Sajid of the Left leading by a narrow margin of 35 votes, securing 1,707 votes, while ABVP’s Govind Dangi received 1,672 votes.

After a four-year hiatus, the long-awaited JNU student union elections took place on Friday, with an impressive voter turnout of approximately 73 per cent, marking the highest participation in 12 years.

Over 7,700 registered voters actively engaged in the electoral process, casting their votes through secret balloting. Dhananjay Kumar from the Left, vying for the position of JNUSU president, comes from the Dalit community, marking a significant representation after nearly three decades since Batti Lal Bairwa’s presidency in 1996.

In contrast, both the ABVP and the Birsa Ambedkar Phule Student Association have nominated tribal candidates, Umesh Chandra Ajmeera and Biswajit Minji, respectively, for the presidential role.

The atmosphere during the voting process became charged with slogans such as ‘Jai Bhim’, ‘Bharat Mata Ki Jai’ and ‘Lal Salaam’, accompanied by the rhythmic beating of drums.

A total of 19 candidates competed for positions in the JNUSU central panel, with eight contenders vying for the president’s seat.

The central panel includes positions for president, vice-president, joint secretary and general secretary.

The counting of votes was underway till the filing of the report.