ABVP wins 3 DUSU posts; Independent candidate Deepanshu Shokeen gets the post of Vice President

The Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) on Saturday (September 19, 2026) won three central panel posts of the Delhi University Students’ Union (DUSU), while an independent candidate, formerly associated with the National Students’ Union of India (NSUI), won the post of vice president.

Like last year, ABVP won the post of president, secretary and joint secretary. However, this year saw a neck-and-neck fight with NSUI at the back in two posts. ABVP’s overall winning margin has dropped from 23,873 last year to 9,671 this year. Voter turnout increased from last year’s 39.5% to this year’s 40.46%.

This year’s student elections were held against the backdrop of the Jantar Mantar protests in the city, in which many students of Delhi University participated. The surveys also came after the collapse of a building for paying guests in the Satya Niketan area, leading to student protests for better accommodation.

ABVP’s Yash Dabbas won the post of president after receiving 24,576 votes, while NSUI’s Vijay Shankar Meena came second with 22,523 votes.

Deepanshu Shokeen, an independent candidate, won the post of vice president. With 30,615 votes, he won with the highest number of votes and the widest margin of the four winners. He was followed by ABVP’s Ishu Maurya with 16,901 votes.

ABVP’s Riya Chhawdi was elected DUSU secretary with 21,650 votes, defeating NSUI’s Namrata Chaudhary who finished with 14,869 votes. ABVP’s Lakshay Raj Singh won the post of joint secretary with a narrow margin of 837 votes. Vishesh Yadav of Samajwadi Chhatra Sabha (SCS) came second, while NSUI finished third.

President-elect Mr. Dabas said, “Delhi University’s Gen-Z has sent a clear message that it believes in social harmony and nationalism. I will work to convert that trust into accountability and ensure that every student’s voice is strongly represented through the student union.”

The organization will focus on student safety, better facilities, equal opportunities and a positive academic environment, said Ms. Chhawdi, the secretary-elect. “We will work to ensure that the concerns of students, especially female students, are given due attention,” she added.

BJP congratulates ABVP

BJP National President Nitin Nabin on Saturday extended his wishes for ABVP’s victory in the DUSU elections. “Congratulations to all my young friends in Delhi University on ABVP’s historic victory in DUSU elections! This victory reflects the continued faith of the youth in positive and constructive student politics, rooted in the Nation First spirit, and their firm determination to contribute to the vision of ‘Viksit Bharat’,” he said.

Last year, the presidential candidate from ABVP won with a margin of 16,196 votes, while this year it was 2,053. Similarly, the post of joint secretary was secured by ABVP last year with a margin of 4,445 votes against 837 votes this year. The margin for the post of secretary increased to 6,781 this year from 3,234 last year.

Visually impaired candidate

The Aam Aadmi Party’s Students’ Association for Alternative Politics fielded a visually impaired candidate for the post of secretary for the first time in the DUSU elections. Candidate Pankaj Kumar Dhingra got 7,639 votes.

While the joint Left panel with the All India Students’ Association (AISA) and the Students’ Federation of India (SFI) had hoped to challenge the ABVP-NSUI binary, their performance was similar to previous years.

While some students pointed out that left-wing organizations were active during Jantar Mantar, it did not drastically change their vote share from previous years. Presidential candidate Ananya Raturi got 5,377 votes and is third. They also placed third in the Secretary election, receiving 8,734 votes.

Like last year many students opted for NOTA button. As many as 4,310 students pressed NOTA for President, 4,359 for Vice President, 7,884 for Secretary and 7,389 for Joint Secretary.

Published – 19 Sep 2026 11:12 IST