DU student union elections not going to be held anytime soon: Officials

NEW DELHI: Uncertainty looms large over Delhi University Students Union (DUSU) elections this academic session with officials saying that there are no plans to hold polls anytime soon. The student body's election was last conducted in 2019.

Polls were not held in 2020 and 2021 due to COVID-19. "We are in a dilemma about when to hold these elections. There is no plan as of now. We have admissions and exams going on," Delhi University proctor Rajni Abbi said. "We cannot hold them in January. We were thinking of conducting the election in Feburary, but that is also not possible. We are not sure when to hold them. Currently, our priority is admission," she said.

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Meanwhile, students have pointed out that many of the elected representatives at the university and college level are no longer students as they have completed their studies. DUSU is the main representative body of students from most colleges and faculties. Apart from this, each college has its own students' union, whose elections are held annually. DUSU's elections are held via direct voting of the students of the university and member Colleges. They are usually held in August -September on a yearly basis.

These elections are organised simultaneously with other elections at the college level for 500 posts across the university with nearly 2,500 students contesting in them. Around 1 lakh students vote in every election, which also acts as a stepping stone for budding politicians. "This is a mini democracy. I would say the biggest student body election in the world. It is a constructive practice," DUSU President Akshit Dahiya said.

"The last election occurred in September 2019 and we are hoping that all the admission across the graduate and postgraduate programmes will conclude by this month's end, following which the elections can be held," he said. In 2019, Akshit Dahiya of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) was elected as the president, Pradeep Tanwar as the vice president, Ashish Lamba as the secretary and Shinvangi Kharwal as the joint secretary.

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"The university has conveyed to us that admission is a priority once they are over we are hoping to have elections," he added. Meanwhile, the National Students Union of India (NSUI), the student wing of the Indian National Congress is less hopeful for the election this semester. "We are not sure how the university will conduct elections. Now admission is underway. The elections are not possible. We have not started campaigning as there is no point," NSUI general secretary Nitish Gaur said.