New Delhi: The Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) secured three of the four central posts in the Delhi University Students’ Union (DUSU) elections after a closely fought vote-counting process that saw leads change hands several times. Independent candidate Deepanshu Shokeen won the Vice-President post, producing the other major result of the election.
The ABVP emerged victorious in the contests for President, Secretary and Joint Secretary, while the Vice-President position went to Shokeen, who contested as an independent candidate after being associated with the National Students’ Union of India (NSUI).
According to the election figures provided, voter turnout stood at 40.46 percent, with the ABVP and NSUI among the principal organisations contesting the central panel.
Vote counting began on Saturday at the multipurpose hall in Delhi University’s sports stadium, around 90 minutes later than scheduled. University administrative officials were present during the process, and the counting was conducted under videography.
The counting continued through 22 rounds, with relatively narrow margins in several contests keeping the outcome uncertain for much of the day.
The contest for President witnessed significant changes during counting. NSUI candidate Vijay Shankar Meena held the lead during part of the middle stages, including rounds 10 to 13.
The situation began to change around the 15th and 16th rounds, when ABVP candidate Yash Dabas moved ahead. Dabas subsequently retained the advantage through the remaining rounds and was declared the winner of the presidential election.
The race for Joint Secretary was also closely contested and remained unsettled until the later stages of counting.
Gopal Chaudhary of NSUI and Vishesh Yadav of SCS were ahead at different stages. However, ABVP candidate Lakshya Raj Singh gained the lead in the concluding rounds and ultimately secured the Joint Secretary post.
The Secretary contest was comparatively more consistent. ABVP candidate Riya Chhabadi established an early advantage and maintained her lead during the counting process.
She eventually defeated NSUI candidate Namrata Chaudhary, giving the ABVP another position on the four-member central panel.
The Vice-President contest produced a notable result, with independent candidate Deepanshu Shokeen establishing an early lead and maintaining it through the counting.
Shokeen, described as a former NSUI-associated candidate who contested independently, finished ahead of his rivals to capture the Vice-President position.
Winning candidates
President: Yash Dabas — ABVP
Vice-President: Deepanshu Shokeen — Independent
Secretary: Riya Chhabadi — ABVP
Joint Secretary: Lakshya Raj Singh — ABVP
Following the declaration of the results, supporters celebrated on the Delhi University campus. ABVP supporters held a victory procession accompanied by drums and fireworks after the organisation secured three of the four central DUSU posts.
The outcome gives the ABVP control of the President, Secretary and Joint Secretary positions, while the election of an independent candidate as Vice-President leaves the four-member central panel split between ABVP representatives and an independent.
