DUSU elections: Campaigning ends; voting on September 22

In a notice issued, the Chief Election Officer, DUSU elections, said the canvassing time will stop at 8 am on Thursday

The campaigning for the Delhi University Students’ Union (DUSU) polls ended on Thursday morning ahead of the elections scheduled for Friday.

The election is being held after a gap of four years. (ANI photo)

National Students’ Union of India (NSUI) and Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) were involved in a heated battle amid videos of violence emerging on social media.

HT could not independently verify the authenticity of video clips circulated on social media.

In a written statement, ABVP said that NSUI was involved in incidents of violence with involvement of outsiders in the election campaign.

“Disturbing evidence, including videos and eyewitness accounts, has come to light, painting a troubling picture of violence and intimidation perpetrated by these outsiders,” said ABVP.

Refuting allegations, NSUI said that ABVP was spoiling the atmosphere by indulging in indiscipline and hooliganism.

“ABVP goons continuously harassed students and an atmosphere of fear is being created on the campus of Delhi University,” said NSUI.

Chandra Shekhar, chief election officer, said, “I have not officially received any complaint. The videos of incidents being talked about did not take place inside any college on the campus. If the incidents would have taken place inside the college, principals are supposed to take stern action,” said Shekhar.

Meanwhile, a student group Krantikari Yuva Sangathan (KYS) decided to clean the streets that was littered with campaign-related pamphlets.

“The streets of the DU campus are littered, and the walls are plastered with cards and posters of different candidates. But the real issues gripping the students of DU as well as the majority of the youth of the country are completely neglected in the electoral process. On the contrary, what is at full display is the use of money and muscle power,” stated KYS’s statement.

Delhi police had on Wednesday registered an FIR (first information report) in connection with the case relating to a purported video where men were seen smashing a car with lathis in Mukherjee Nagar earlier this week.

Jitendra Meena, deputy commissioner of police (DCP) (north-west), said that police had registered an FIR on the complaint of a person.

“We had received a complaint about an incident where a car was smashed. We have registered an FIR although at this point, I cannot say if it’s related to DUSU elections or not,” said Meena.