Fiery debate sets stage for JNU students’ union polls

This year’s polling will take place in two phases, featuring a tight contest between the Left Unity and the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP).

The Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) students’ union (JNUSU) election is set to be held on Tuesday, with results expected on Thursday. Known for its high-voltage political atmosphere, this year’s polling will take place in two phases, featuring a tight contest between the Left Unity and the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP). 

Fiery debate sets stage for JNU students’ union polls

Last year, left-affiliated groups swept three of the four central panel posts, while ABVP broke a nearly decade-long streak by winning the joint secretary seat. This time, the Left Unity, a coalition of the All India Students’ Association (AISA), the Students’ Federation of India (SFI), and the Democratic Students’ Federation (DSF), has fielded Aditi Mishra (president), Kizhakoot Gopika Babu (vice-president), Sunil Yadav (general secretary), and Danish Ali (joint secretary). ABVP has nominated Vikas Patel (president), Tanya Kumari (vice-president), Rajeshwar Kant Dubey (general secretary), and Anuj (joint secretary). 

Other organisations in the fray include the National Students’ Union of India (NSUI), Progressive Students’ Association (PSA), Disha Students’ Organisation (DSO), and several independent candidates. 

The much-anticipated presidential debate, held late on Sunday, saw fiery speeches and loud slogans from both sides. Aditi Mishra, a PhD scholar from the School of International Studies and the Left’s presidential candidate, opened her address with solidarity statements for Palestine, Kashmir’s statehood, Ladakh’s environment, and the release of activist Sonam Wangchuk. 

“Since 2014, we have been facing this attack on the idea of India and the idea of universities,” Mishra said, citing bulldozed homes, the incarceration of activists Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam, and the “shrinking space for dissent.” She also referred to Bihar’s elections, saying, “Landless farmers, women, and labourers are fighting for their fundamental rights… The unemployed youth are being told to search for temples in mosques instead of jobs.” 

ABVP’s presidential candidate Vikas Patel countered by accusing the Left of stagnation. “The campus is tired of left politics. For fifty years they have ruled and ruined,” he said, calling the 1975 Emergency “a black spot on democracy” and alleging that the JNU administration acts as “the fourth partner of the Left alliance.” Patel added, “There is not a single woman or Dalit in the Left’s politburo. The Left talks of equality, but their practice betrays it.” 

Amid the ideological sparring, other contenders questioned whether either bloc prioritises student welfare. PSA’s Shinde Vijayalaxmi Vyankat Rao tore up a copy of the chief proctor’s office (CPO) manual on stage, calling it “a symbol of surveillance, not safety.” NSUI’s Vikash accused both the Left and the Right of neglecting campus issues such as fellowships, research funding, and hostel safety. 

Meanwhile, Birsa Ambedkar Phule Students’ Association (BAPSA) presidential candidate Raj Ratan Rajoriya missed the debate due to a family emergency and is expected to address a press conference on Monday. 

“BAPSA, on the behalf of Rajratan Rajoriya, expresses their gratitude to all the organisations of JNU, the Election Commision, Presidential candidates and the student community of our university for standing in this time of grief and postponing the Presidential debate and agreeing for Rajratan to practice his right to contest. We strongly appeal to all the Bahujans and progressive students to build a strong movement against the institutional apathy,” a statement by the association said.

The current JNUSU president was in office for six months.