BHUBANESWAR: Utkal University is gearing up for an interesting contest in the student union elections, with the NSUI and the All India Students’ Federation (AISF) forming an alliance to take on the ABVP and Biju Chhatra Janata Dal (BCJD) for key posts.
NSUI Odisha president Bibhuti Bhusan Mohapatra said the organisation has decided to support an AISF candidate for the vice-president’s post, citing the latter’s popularity among students. Meanwhile, nominations for the October 15 elections were scrutinised, with five candidates shortlisted for the president’s post. They are Abhiram Mishra, Prachi Priyadarshi Rout, Sk Jainul Abedin, Sourav Behera and Surjya Narayan Nayak.
Six candidates, Asit Pradhan, Naibedya Mohanty, Papu Rout, Puja Rani Nayak, Sila Mishra and Suryakanta Mahakul, will contest for the vice-president’s post, while four candidates, Ayushree Pradhan, Dibyadarshan Dash, Sambit Suman Rath and Soumya Ranjan Routray, are in the fray for general secretary.
Another 26 candidates will contest for various other posts, including joint general secretary and secretaries of the cultural club, athletic club and social service guild.
The university had earlier witnessed a record 219 nomination forms being taken.