Litmus test for ABVP and NSUI in Rajasthan University elections
Rebels to disturb the equations; voting to take place on Monday.
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Sanjay Machedi (left), Deepak Meena (right) and seven other candidates are fighting for the top post in RU election scheduled to take place on August 28.
Jaipur: The voting for Rajasthan University (RU) student union elections will take place on Monday. All the eyes are on the presidential post and who will bag it. While a close fight is being anticipated between NSUI candidate Deepak Kumar Meena and Sanjay Machedi of ABVP, the rebels from both the organizations may disturb the equations.
NSUI rebel Rahul Bhakar and ABVP dissident Pawan Yadav are in the fight as independent candidates. Independent candidates have always played an important role in RU polls. They in fact grabbed the top post twice in the past seven years.
ABVP has not won a student election in Rajasthan University since 2013. It will be a question of getting back the lost prestige for the organization. NSUI – a Congress-backed student organization – will want to win to send a strong message before the assembly elections in Rajasthan scheduled to take place next year.
Student union polls began in Rajasthan in 2010. In three of the first four years, ABVP bagged the presidential post, but has been losing all the elections since then. NSUI has won twice first in 2014 and then in 2015.
Ban on campaigning came into force on Saturday evening.
List of Rajasthan University student union presidents
2010 – Manish Yadav (ABVP)
2011 – Prabha Choudhary (Independent)
2012 – Rajesh Meena (ABVP)
2013 – Kanaram Jat (ABVP)
2014 – Anil Chopra (NSUI)
2015 – Satveer Choudhary (NSUI)
2016 – Ankit Dhayal (Independent)
Nine student leaders will content in the elections for the top post. A total of 18 nominations were filed. Nine candidates withdrew their nominations on Thursday.
Deepak Kumar Meena will fight the election for the post of president from NSUI. His main contender will be Sanjay Machedi of ABVP. Pawan Yadav who became a dissident after he was not given a ticket by ABVP has filed his nomination as an independent candidate. Rahul Bhakar, an NSUI dissident, is also in the fray.
Related story: RU Election: Final list of candidates declared, 9 to contest for the top post
