Plea in HC over DUSU poll

A law student today approached the Delhi High Court alleging that most of the political parties and leaders were pumping money into Delhi University Students Union (DUSU) poll and indulging in "illegal activities".
A bench of justices B D Ahmed and Sanjeev Sachdeva agreed to hear the plea mentioned before it by Ruby, a first-year- student of Law Faculty in DU.
The court listed matter for September 7.
The plea stated the candidates were indulging in offences like bribing of voters, intimidation of voters, canvasing and holding public meetings and using propaganda outside the university or college campus premises.
It said that candidates were using printed posters in the style of handmade posters, taking out huge procession of cars on public road costing several lakhs of rupees to campaign for the September 11 election.

"Most of the candidates who belong to various political parties like the Bhartiya Janta Party, the Congress, the Aam Aadmi Party are contesting through their students outfits like ABVP, NSUI, CYSS," the petition said.

Seeking disqualification of all candidates who indulged in corrupt practices, the plea said "if these candidates are permitted to contest in the election, it will be a complete failure of democratic system of the DUSU election 2015-16".
It alleged that the AAP-led student body Chhatra Yuva Sangharsh Samiti (CYSS) organised a rock concert and fresher's parties as part of the poll campaign in Talkatora Stadium on September 1 which was in complete violation of the guidelines laid down by the Committee headed by former Chief Election Commissioner J M Lyngdoh.

The committee had come out with recommendations to curb the influence of money and muscle power in the students' union elections, the petition said, adding that walls across Delhi were being defaced with posters "camouflaged to pass off as handmade posters", in clear violation of the guidelines.
The Chief Election Officer of Delhi University and Delhi Police Commissioner are duty bound to follow directions issued by the Supreme Court while conducting the students union election in DU, it said.