BHUBANESWAR: Student union elections scheduled for Thursday across universities and colleges in the state have exposed embarrassing lack of coordination and discordance between the ruling BJP and its student wing Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), triggering widespread resentment within the saffron organisation.
The elections, returning after eight years, were expected to revive campus democracy and give students an opportunity to elect their representatives. Instead, cancellation of polls in many colleges has raised questions about the government’s preparedness and efforts made to ensure that every student could participate in the electoral process.
With barely 24 hours left for the polls, differences between ABVP and local BJP leaders over candidate selection have also emerged a major challenge. Party sources said even after nominations were withdrawn and final candidate lists published, there was no consensus in several places, with candidates backed by ABVP facing opposition from local BJP leaders and vice versa.
The problem stems partly from the party’s decision to entrust MLAs and local leaders with overseeing elections in their respective Assembly constituencies or districts. “Local leaders are shouldering election expenditure and in some cases, backing candidates of their choice rather than those selected by the ABVP. This could benefit candidates supported by opposition parties,” party sources said.
The issue reportedly figured on Tuesday at a meeting of the committee overseeing the student elections. One member pointed out that candidates selected by the ABVP were not receiving support from local MLAs and their supporters in some institutions because of disagreements over their candidature.
Another member reportedly observed that MPs were taking little interest in the elections and not extending financial assistance. The problem was particularly acute in areas where the BJP had lost Assembly polls, leaving student candidates without the support available elsewhere.