In a controversy surrounding the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) Students’ Union elections, the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) has accused the JNU Election Committee of violating constitutional norms and favoring leftist student groups.

At a press conference, the ABVP claimed that, for the first time in JNU’s history, the nomination withdrawal window was reopened even after the final list of candidates had been declared.

Advertisement

The saffron organization termed the move a serious attack on the democratic and constitutional values of the university.

According to the ABVP, the last date for filing nominations was April 15, and the deadline for withdrawal was April 16.

However, under alleged pressure from left-leaning student groups such as AISA and SFI, the Election Committee extended the withdrawal date to April 17.

Later, it was reportedly extended twice on the same day — first to 4:00 PM and then to 4:30 PM — in an apparent effort to help the Left groups form an alliance.

The ABVP further claimed that even after the final list of candidates was released on April 17, the Election Committee attempted to reopen the withdrawal window again on April 18 for 30 minutes, without issuing any prior notice.

They alleged that this was done in coordination with members of last year’s Left-led students’ union.

Rajeshwar Kant Dubey, president of the ABVP JNU unit, called the situation deeply unfortunate. He said the repeated violations of rules and deadlines show how the Election Committee is functioning under the influence of leftist student groups.