The Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) has registered an unprecedented feat in the history of Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' Union (JNUSU) elections.
Vaibhav Meena of ABVP has won the Joint Secretary post, breaking a decade-long drought for the party.
The triumph is a reflection of the great performance of ABVP, since the group had secured 23 out of 42 councillor posts in 16 schools and special centres, which was the maximum number of seats secured by any student body.
Amit Malviya, BJP National In-charge and Co-incharge West Bengal, Information and Technology Department, tweeted from his X handle in celebratory mood: "Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' Union Students' Union (JNUSU) win: ABVP candidate Vaibhav Meena is elected Joint Secretary. And that's not all.". ABVP has registered a record victory in the JNUSU elections, winning 23 of 42 councillor posts in 16 schools and special centers – the highest number of seats won by any students' organization.
While counting votes, ABVP contestants showed unimagined resilience, winning all four central panel posts and upsetting the traditional Leftist political stronghold on campus.
Though the ABVP lost the President, Vice-President, and General Secretary elections, the narrow margin of loss in the elections indicated a sea change in political attitudes in JNU.
Vaibhav Meena won the Joint Secretary position with a landslide vote of 1,518.
AISA member Nitish Kumar was elected to the position of President with 1,702 votes, and Democratic Students' Federation (DSF) members Manisha and Munteha Fatima were elected as Vice-President and General Secretary, respectively. Manisha bagged 1,150 votes, and Munteha Fatima bagged 1,520 votes to consolidate the strength of DSF on the central panel.
ABVP waged an even keel campaign with Nittu Goutham, Shikha Swaraj, Vaibhav Meena, and Kunal Rai standing for the Vice-President, President, General Secretary, and Joint Secretary respectively. All were a willing and determined effort in re-scripting the political narrative of the campus.
The elections were held on April 25 after being postponed time and again in the face of campus agitations, and nearly 70 percent of the voters exercised their franchise, with some 5,500 students casting their vote.
The battle was fierce, with the coalitions forming between groups: AISA formed an alliance with DSF, and SFI with the Birsa Ambedkar Phule Students' Association (BAPSA), the All India Students' Federation (AISF), and the Progressive Students' Association. ABVP contested singly.
Even though 68.3 percent voting was short of 73 percent in the 2024 election, it was a very good student turnout. 5,400 voted out of the 7,906 registered students.
The voting was conducted in two shifts, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m., in 17 booths on campus. The votes were not counted on Friday evening and were officially declared on Monday, April 28.
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