DUSU polls: After Delhi HC nod, results to be declared on November 21

Speaking to The Indian Express, DU Proctor Rajni Abbi said, “Following the court’s order, we decided to hold the counting on November 21 as per the availability of all Election Commission officials and technicians. The counting will start at 8 am and the result will be announced the same day.”

The polls were conducted more than one and a half months ago but a division bench of Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela had stayed the counting on September 26 over allegations of large-scale defacement of sites across Delhi by poll candidates.

On November 21, vote counting will commence at the DU Conference Centre overseen by an Election Commission team. The varsity had secured the electronic voting machines (EVMs) in a monitored strong room, while individual colleges safeguarded ballot boxes.

EVMs were used for the central panel election, which includes the president, vice-president, secretary, and joint secretary positions, whereas paper ballots were used for college representatives.

The turnout for this year’s DUSU election — 35.2% — was markedly lower than last year’s 42%.

The delay in counting stemmed from widespread defacement of public spaces with campaign material, prompting the Delhi High Court to halt the declaration of release until cleanup efforts were completed.

While DU on Monday submitted in court that “nearly all colleges/departments/institutes/faculties” in its North and South campuses have been cleaned, advocate Prashant Manchanda, who filed an application, appearing as party-in-person, submitted a compilation of photographs of the defacement continuing across Delhi, including in police stations and other sites.

The counsel for the students and contesting candidates undertook before the court that they shall get all the sites mentioned by Manchanda cleaned and repainted within a week.

In the status report filed by DU dated November 9, by professor Satyapal Singh, chief election officer of DUSU polls 2024-25, it was submitted that DU, by way of a notification on October 30, has constituted the “DUSU Elections Reforms Committee” which will be looking at strict compliance of Lyngdoh Committee recommendations in the forthcoming students’ union elections, reservation for women in DUSU composition, nominating Nodal Officer “to protect exterior wails of the University/Colleges and to prevent defacement throughout the year,” etc.

DU, in its status report, also submitted that “the University undertakes to safeguard and put in place a robust mechanism to monitor future DUSU elections so that there is no defacement of public properties by any prospective candidates”.

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