New Delhi: All major student organisations on Friday announced their candidates for the central panel of the upcoming Delhi University Students' Union (DUSU) elections, setting the stage for the September 18 contest for the four key posts.
The Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) fielded Yash Dabas as its presidential candidate against the National Students' Union of India (NSUI)'s Vijay Shankar Meena and the All India Students' Association (AISA) and Students' Federation of India's (SFI) joint candidate Ananya Raturi.
ABVP has nominated Ishu Maurya for vice-president, Riya Chhawadi for secretary and Lakshya Raj Singh for joint secretary.
Dabas, who is from Kanjhawala in Delhi, is currently pursuing a master's from the Department of Buddhist Studies of Delhi University. He is an international-level tennis player and has participated in ITF competitions in Spain, Australia and Serbia, besides representing the DU at university-level competitions, the RSS-affiliated student organisation said on Friday.
Maurya, who is from Varanasi, is pursuing law at Campus Law Centre and has been associated with ABVP since 2021. He has served as president of the Satyawati College (Morning) unit and co-convener of Students for Seva.
Chhawadi, a fourth-year BA Programme student at Sri Aurobindo College, is an inter-college-level basketball player, while Singh is pursuing law at Campus Law Centre. Singh has represented India in handball at the Asian Games and World Championship, according to the ABVP.
The Congress-affiliated NSUI has fielded Meena for president, Vir Chatrath for vice-president, Namrata Chaudhary for secretary and Gopal Choudhary for joint secretary.
The organisation, in a post on X, said its campaign would focus on putting "student interests first" and building a "prosperous, safe and better" Delhi University.
Meena is originally from Rajasthan. He completed his graduation from Rajasthan University and is enrolled at Department of Buddhist Studies, the NSUI said in a statement.
With a strong understanding of academic and student-related concerns, Meena has been actively associated with issues concerning student rights, social justice, and democratic representation, they added.
Chatrath, a resident of Delhi, is also pursuing an MA from the Department of Buddhist Studies, according to NSUI.
Choudhary completed her graduation from SPM College, University of Delhi, and, like Meena and Chatrath, is a student of Buddhist Studies.
Gopal Choudhary, originally from Rajasthan, completed his graduation from Satyawati College at DU and is also pursuing an MA in Buddhist Studies.
Gopal Choudhary, the joint secretary candidate for NSUI, has been actively working on issues concerning students and remains committed to creating a better academic and democratic environment on campus, NSUI said in a statement.
The AISA-SFI alliance has nominated Raturi for president, Akshat Shikhar for vice-president, Stanzin Deskyong for secretary and B Parijaat for joint secretary.
The alliance described its panel as representing "alternative politics" and said it would seek to build a student-led DUSU while opposing "money and muscle politics".
Raturi, an AISA member, has been involved in student movements on issues including sexual harassment and accountability on campus, according to the alliance. Shikhar, also from AISA, is a student of Motilal Nehru College and was associated with protests at Jantar Mantar, it said.
Deskyong, a first-year MSc Mathematics student at Hindu College, previously served as vice-president of the Ramjas College Students' Union, while Parijaat is a first-year MA English student at Hansraj College and has been involved in literary and theatre activities.
The announcements came after the Delhi University chief election officer released the list of candidates following scrutiny and withdrawal of nominations on Friday.
Seven candidates are in the fray for president, five for vice-president, four for secretary and four for joint secretary. The final lists are provisional and subject to further verification.
Voting for the DUSU elections will be held on September 18, with polling for day classes from 8.30 am to 1 pm and evening classes from 3 pm to 7.30 pm. Counting of votes is scheduled for September 19.
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