DUSU won, ABVP breaches red bastion in JNU: What it means for national politics

Three out of four – the score line is impressive. The ideological Left has held on to one of its few surviving bastions in the country after winning the students union election in the Jawaharlal Nehru University. CPI-backed AISF won the contest for the post of president while ultra-left All India Students Association bagged the seats of vice-president and general secretary. Score lines, however, have a tendency to conceal more than they reveal. They never tell you about the nature of the contest or subtle shifts in the voters’ mood. While the Left winning in its stronghold has an air of dull predictability about it, the real takeaway in the elections at JNU is the thumping arrival of the right wing ABVP as a challenger to the entrenched order. On Saturday, it had swept all top seats in Delhi University; the day after, it ended up snatching one seat – that of joint secretary – in JNU. This is a first for the BJP’s student wing in 14 years. The last time it won a post was in 2001. Sambit Patra, who is the BJP’s chief spokesperson these days, was elected president then. [caption id=“attachment_2431918” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Representational image. AFP[/caption] Last year too, it had come close but hadn’t managed to capture a post. To make matters sweeter, it also ended up second in two posts, vice president and general secretary. ABVP secured 1,153 votes for the post of vice president while the winner AISA bagged 1,387; its vote count for the post of general secretary was 946 to AISA’s 1159. It was not too far behind the runners up to the president’s post too. While AISA bagged 962 votes, ABVP secured 924. All contests, including the joint-secretary that ABVP won, were close and that in itself is a leg up for the ABVP. This showing could be interpreted in two ways – first, the ideological right is getting more acceptance among the young; and second, it is enjoying the ripple effect of the feel good mood in wider national politics. The first one means the competitors are gradually finding it difficult to explain to the youth the relevance of their ideology in the contemporary context. If they don’t find an answer to it quickly, they may soon lose their foothold in the campuses. The second one needs to be explained with clarity. A big section of the voters in national elections is students. The general election 2014 saw as many as 12 crore first-time voters. Add to that the numbers in the 19-23 age group, which can be categorised as students. These voters were the force behind the BJP’s massive victory in the general election in 2014. Had the general perception of the government changed in the last 15-odd months, it would quickly reflect in the campus elections. Given the fact the political affiliation of each student outfit is no secret, there’s reason to believe that young voters still repose faith in the current dispensation. Of course, cadre base and organisational strength play a role in these elections, but to separate it totally from the wider trend defies common sense. Not too much can be made out of this, but it will surely give the national ruling party bragging rights about connecting better with youth and aspirations.