Left Unity sweeps JNU polls, wins all 4 central panel posts, defeats RSS-backed ABVP

New Delhi: The Left Unity alliance has once again cemented its dominance at Jawaharlal Nehru University, sweeping all four central panel posts in the students’ union elections.

The coalition of the All India Students’ Association (AISA), Students’ Federation of India (SFI), and Democratic Students’ Federation (DSF) secured a comprehensive victory, reaffirming its long-standing influence on the campus. Aditi Mishra was elected president, defeating the RSS-backed ABVP candidate Vikas Patel by 449 votes.

Kizhakoot Gopika Babu won the vice-president’s seat after defeating Tanya Kumari, while Sunil Yadav and Danish Ali emerged victorious as general secretary and joint secretary, respectively, defeating their ABVP rivals Rajeshwar Kant Dubey and Anuj.

About 9,043 students were eligible to vote this year, with a voter turnout of 67%—slightly lower than the previous election’s 70%. The polling day saw energetic participation, with students lining up outside hostels and academic blocks amid campaign songs, chants, and drumbeats.

The outcome marks a blow to the ABVP, which had re-entered the JNUSU central panel last year after a decade when Vaibhav Meena won the joint secretary’s post. Earlier, in 2015, Saurabh Sharma’s victory had ended a 14-year dry spell for the right-wing outfit. The ABVP last captured the presidency in 2000–01, when Sandeep Mahapatra broke through the Left’s long-standing hold.

With this year’s results, the Left Unity has once again consolidated its political grip on JNU — a campus renowned as a hub of debate, dissent, and student activism.