The National Students Union of India (NSUI) and Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad traded charges against each for spreading hooliganism on the campus in the run up to the polls for the Delhi University Students Union polls. With two days to go for Delhi University elections, students’ groups at the varsity held full fledged campaigns, with the silence period to begin at 12 pm on September 21 as per the code of conduct.

National President of NSUI Neeraj Kundan said that there are continuous attacks on the President, Vice President, Secretary and Joint Secretary candidates from NSUI and the police is, on the contrary, working to arrest NSUI officials.

Recently, the cars of NSUI President, Vice President, Secretary and candidate for the post of Joint Secretary were vandalised by ABP goons and two workers were fatally attacked. The car of the candidate for the post of Vice President was vandalized in Ramjas College, the candidate for the post of Joint Secretary. The car was broken outside Hansraj College and the candidate for the post of Secretary was attacked in Kirori Mal College, the NSUI alleged.

“Yesterday at 5:00 am, NSUI workers were beaten up by ABVP goons in front of Hansraj College in which one worker was seriously injured.

In Miranda Girls House College, an attempt was made by ABVP goons to forcibly enter the college and the gate of the college was broken and after entering the college, girls were molested. In the name of publicity in the college, ABVP goons continuously harassed students and girl students are being abused and molested and an atmosphere of fear is being created in the campus of Delhi University,” the NSUI alleged. .

Meanwhile, the ABVP, one of the largest student organizations in the Delhi University, condemned the recent incidents of violence and the involvement of outsiders in the DUSU election campaign by NSUI.

“Since yesterday, ABVP has been raising concerns about the infiltration of outsiders associated with the National Students’ Union of India (NSUI) into our campus. Disturbing evidence, including videos and eyewitness accounts, has come to light, painting a troubling picture of violence and intimidation perpetrated by these outsiders,” the ABVP said in a statement.

In one video shared by NSUI, a car clearly marked as belonging to Rajasthan University was vandalized by individuals associated with NSUI. This act of vandalism occurred amidst clashes between different factions within NSUI. Such incidents undermine the sanctity of our campus and the principles of peaceful coexistence that the student community cherishes, it said.

Another video surfaced showing individuals wearing masks to conceal their identities, armed with lathis, creating chaos outside SPM College. These individuals went on to vandalize cars belonging to various student organizations and subjected female members of ABVP, who were peacefully campaigning outside the college, to terror and intimidation. ABVP strongly condemns any form of violence and intimidation on or around our campus, it added.

Meanwhile, the NSUI held campaigns at Vishwavidyalaya Metro Station, Khalsa College, Miranda House College, Ramjas College, Hansraj and Hindu College among others. Voting for the Delhi University Students Union (DUSU) will be held on September 22.

Presidential candidate of NSUI, Hitesh Gulia, and the candidate for the post of secretary, Yakshna Sharma, held campaigns and informed the students about their manifesto that includes issues like menstrual leaves, emergency response system for distress calls and increased police patrolling outside colleges.

The ABVP shared their manifestos, engaged with students across college campuses, hostels, and also held door-to-door interactions. ABVP held campaigns at Ramjas College, Shri Ram College of Commerce, Shaheed Bhagat Singh College, College of Vocational Studies, and Aurobindo College.