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JNU politics captures the heart, DU catches the head

While JNU is influenced by ideological matters, DU polls focus on everyday issues
Last Updated 15 September 2012, 20:31 IST

While politics and polls are an integral part of students’ lives at both Jawaharlal Nehru University and Delhi University, their elections are poles apart. Where JNU elections are mostly based on ideology and intellectual debate, DU focuses on real life issues.

JNU elections are organised by the students themselves. At DU, the  administration takes charge.

Party members agree that both universities have divergent political preferences. In DU Students' Union (DUSU), power largely shuffles between the Congress-backed National Students’ Union of India (NSUI) and the Bharatiya Janata Party-backed Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP).

However, JNU’s Left ideology has remained intact with little chances of the Right overpowering this tradition.

“If you go to JNU, they will mostly hold debates on topics related to world issues, economy and how people are not being given their basic rights. But in DU we focus on student-centric issues like toilets, hostels, better provisions for foreign and outstation students,” says Amrish Pandey, convener NSUI, DU.

Rohit Chahal, state secretary,  ABVP, DU points out that because of DU's vastness, it becomes difficult for parties to campaign.

“More than 80 per cent of our students stay outside the campus. Our work is time consuming as we are catering to over a lakh students. In layman's words JNU mein Delhi ki hawa nahi lagti (it does not seem like we are in Delhi). JNU’s elections are not based on resolving practical issues like ours,” he says.

Om Prakash, member of the All India Students Association (AISA), JNU feels that the purview of their elections is smaller and much more intellectual than DU’s. “We do not need to go from one college to another and most of our campaigning takes place in the evenings. We fight on ideological and political issues with a special focus on presidential debates,” he said.

JNU Students’ Union (JNUSU) polls were revived in December 2011 after a gap of four years, following a stay on them by the Supreme Court in 2008. The Lyngdoh committee relaxed a few of its guidelines for JNU, including the age limit, attendance requirement, right to re-contest and use of photocopied pamphlets.

But in DU’s case, the elections had to be in line with the Lyngdoh Committee’s original guidelines, which impose a ban on the use of printed posters, and a limit even on using handmade posters.

Also, JNU elections are held ‘freely’ while DU elections are conducted under tight security and CCTV surveillance.

However, students believe that unions at both universities have one thing in common — they come with a loads of promises that are seldom fulfilled.

“AISA told us they would get WiFi installed on the campus and improve hostel facilities. But nothing has changed as yet,” said Akanksha, a student of JNU.

However, in DU students are still hopeful that they can depend on DUSU for resolving some important issues. “Since the senior administration is difficult to approach, our first resort is usually to approach the union,” said Parth Sharma, a DU student.

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(Published 15 September 2012, 20:31 IST)

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