The vote count for the Delhi University Students Union (DUSU) took place today, September 23. According to the officials, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS)-affiliated Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) won three out of the four central panel posts of the DUSU and the Congress's student wing National Students' Union of India (NSUI) bagged one.
Tushar Dedha of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) won the post of DUSU president, defeating NSUI's Hitesh Gulia. Meanwhile, the Congress student wing's Abhi Dahiya bagged the post of vice president. The posts of secretary and joint secretary were bagged by ABVP's Aparajita and Sachin Baisla respectively, as stated in a report by PTI.
The counting of votes for the DUSU's central panel posts of president, vice president, secretary and joint secretary concluded this evening, September 23. The election was held on September 22.
The DUSU elections have always been a direct contest between the ABVP and the NSUI. To recall, in 2019, ABVP secured three out of four seats. The last DUSU elections were held in 2019.
Giving more details, Chief Election Officer Chander Shekhar said the university recorded a voter turnout of 42 per cent. Around one lakh students were eligible to vote in the election. Although the voting percentage for this year's election was higher than the turnout in 2019, which was 39.90 per cent, it failed to surpass the nearly 11-year-high figure recorded in 2018. The turnouts in 2018 and 2017 were 44.46 per cent and 42.8 per cent, respectively.
Elections at 52 colleges and departments for the central panel were conducted through EVMs (Electronic Voting Machines) while voting for the college union polls was on the paper ballot, as stated in a report by PTI.
The ABVP, Congress-affiliated NSUI, CPI(M)-backed Students' Federation of India (SFI) and the CPI(ML)-Liberation-linked All India Students' Association (AISA) had fielded candidates for all four central posts. The DUSU is the main representative body for most colleges and faculties. Each college also has its own students' union, elections to which are held annually.
