UP polls: Many ex-AUSU leaders in fray this time

Around half-a-dozen candidates in Prayagraj district have served as office bearers of Allahabad University Students’ Union (AUSU) in the past

Although leaders of different political parties are trying their luck in this year’s assembly polls, there exists an unseen common thread among many such candidates in the fray from Prayagraj.

Around half-a-dozen candidates in Prayagraj district have served as office bearers of Allahabad University Students’ Union (AUSU) in the past (For Representation)

Around half-a-dozen of them are not only former Allahabad University (AU) students but have in fact learnt the basics of politics at this “nursery of Indian politics” by not just contesting students’ union polls but also having served as office bearers of Allahabad University Students’ Union (AUSU). Many of them have won assembly elections in the past as well.

Out of 12 assembly seats of Prayagraj, five have candidates who are former office bearers of AUSU. Among them is four-time MLA Anugrah Narain Singh, the Congress candidate from Allahabad North seat. After winning the AUSU elections as president in 1979, Singh tasted success in state politics in 1985 when he won the seat on a Lok Dal ticket.

He was again elected from the same seat in 1989 assembly elections as a Janta Dal’s candidate. After being unsuccessful for a number of years, Singh once again won the seat in 2007 assembly election as candidate of the Indian National Congress. From the same party, he was successful in 2012 too but lost to BJP’s Harshvardhan Bajpai in 2017. This year, he is again in the fray from the Congress against Bajpai.

This election, Tripathi has joined Apna Dal (Sonelal) and is party’s candidate from Pratappur seat. Former first woman president of AUSU Richa Singh has been hogging the limelight this election. The Samjawadi Party (SP) candidate from Allahabad West this time, she was fielded by SP in the last assembly elections (2017) too from this seat but had lost to Sidharth Nath Singh of the BJP. However, ever since her defeat, she has been extensively active in the assembly seat area and is all set to give a tough fight to Sidharth Nath Singh this time.

Likewise, Sandeep Yadav is another active face of student politics of the district who has made his maiden entry into active politics this time from Allahabad North seat on an SP ticket.

A former student of CMP Degree College, a constituent college of AU, he was active in student politics in his college and in AU too. Although he had not won any student union elections, but being member of Samajwadi Chatra Sabha, he was active in protests and agitation staged by SP in the past five years.

Congress candidate from Pratappur seat this time is Sanjay Tiwari. He has been AUSU president in 2002-03 from NSUI panel. State secretary of the party, Tiwari would be facing another former AUSU president Rakesh Dhar Tripathi.

Outside Prayagraj, name of two-time BJP MLA from Phephana (Ballia), Upendra Tiwari is worth mentioning. Tiwari was AUSU vice president in 1996 and again in 1998 from Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP). He had contested from this seat in 2002 and 2007 but remained unsuccessful. However, in 2012 and 2017, he won the seat on a BJP ticket and is party’s candidate in this election too.

AU: A nursery of politics

Allahabad University has given the country three Prime Ministers, including Gulzarilal Nanda, VP Singh and Chandra Shekhar besides a President Shankar Dayal Sharma—all of whom polished their political skills at AU students’ union. From ND Tiwari, who became the first president of AUSU after the nation got freedom to Hemvati Nandan Bahuguna and Madan Lal Khurana (a former general secretary of AUSU) and ND Tiwari besides greats like Janeshwar Mishra are among leaders who started their political careers here. Former Lok Sabha secretary general Subhash Kashyap also served as AUSU president in 1948.