Delhi University (DU) plans to appeal to the Delhi High Court to exempt the Rs 1 crore compensation imposed on it for cleaning the defacement of public property during the recent Delhi University Students' Union (DUSU) elections, a university official announced on Monday, October 21.
The Delhi High Court issued notices to several candidates from the September elections, summoning them to appear at the next hearing scheduled for October 28, reported PTI.
The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) reported that it incurred this expense for cleaning efforts across its 12 zones.
The court had previously ordered DU to compensate civic agencies, including the MCD and DMRC, for the cleaning costs and indicated that the university could recover this amount from the contesting candidates.
In response to the MCD's demand, DU Vice-Chancellor Yogesh Singh stated, "It is a significant amount, and we do not have the funds to pay it. We cannot expect the students to cover this fine either. Although we instructed the candidates to abide by the rules, they continued to violate them, putting us in a difficult position. We will appeal to the court for exemption from this amount."
The DUSU polling took place on September 27, but the vote counting scheduled for September 28 has been halted by the Delhi High Court until all defacement materials, including posters, hoardings, and graffiti, are removed and public property restored.
On Monday, October 21, the court reiterated its warning, noting that the defacement has not yet been cleared and declined to lift the stay on vote counting. It has requested a fresh status report on the cleaning efforts from both Delhi Police and the MCD for the next hearing.
Reacting to the developments, Ashutosh Singh, national media convener of the RSS-backed Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), stated, "We will await the final verdict of the court and then determine our legal options. We urge the high court to lift the stay on counting votes in the larger interest of students."
Congress's student wing, the National Students' Union of India (NSUI), expressed concern over the MCD's excessive compensation amount. They urged both Delhi University and the MCD to resolve the issue swiftly and equitably, also calling for the announcement of DUSU election results without further delay.
