:
Several first-time voters participated in the Delhi University Students’ Union (DUSU) polls on Friday. A few students said they voted for the candidates who promised to deal with the high costs of housing and travel. Some also expressed dismay at heaps of election material, including pamphlets, littered all over the campus. Ballots will be counted on Saturday.
Vice-Chancellor Yogesh Singh visited the polling stations during the day and took stock of the arrangements. Voting in North and South Campuses began around 9 a.m. for the morning colleges and around 3 p.m. for the evening colleges.
The two main poll rivals — the RSS-affiliated Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) and the Congress-backed National Students’ Union of India (NSUI) — encouraged voters to come out in large numbers.
Talking about the security arrangements, DCP (North) Sagar Singh Kalsi said nearly 600 police and paramilitary personnel, along with anti-riot vehicles, fire tenders, and water tankers, were deployed on the ground. “Since the elections took place after a gap of three years, there was a surcharged atmosphere on the campus. Robust security arrangements were made. No untoward incident was reported during the day,” he said.
