Women lead 2025-DUSU poll battle, bring menstrual leave, safer campuses to centrestage

Nearly two decades after Delhi University last had a woman as its student union president, this year's elections have put them back in the spotlight, with both NSUI and the Left-alliance fielding female candidates who are raising issues like campus safety and menstrual leave in their campaigns. The Congress-backed, National Students' Union of India's (NSUI), Joslyn Nandita Choudhary, who is the first woman to be in the fray for the top post in 17 years for the organisation. Choudhary, a postgraduate student of Buddhist Studies, hailing from Rajasthan's Jodhpur said she is contesting to highlight the ''real issues''. ''I come from a farmer's family and have been a student of Delhi University since 2019. I am contesting to raise concerns such as the shortage of hostels, demand for more reading spaces, cleaner washrooms, and a 12-day menstrual leave,'' she told PTI. Choudhary said her vision as a president would include enhanced women's safety, strengthening the gender sensitisation committee against sexual harassment (GSCASH) and upgrading campus infrastructure.

''My aim is to make Delhi University more inclusive, affordable, and truly student-friendly,'' she added. Choudhary also pointed to the pressure created by the four-year undergraduate programme, which she said has ''doubled the demand for classrooms and hostels''.

She vowed to campaign against money and muscle power, stressing that ''every vote for a woman candidate is itself a defeat of muscle power''.

Anjali, who is in the race for president fielded by the left-wing coalition, Students' Federation of India (SFI)-All India Students' Association (AISA), said she got drawn into politics after joining a protest against the construction of a commercial high-rise on the university land. ''Coming to DU was a step towards freedom and autonomy. At a protest I joined in my second year, I met people from AISA and realised that when we see issues in our surroundings and know who is responsible, we must fight,'' she told PTI.

Anjali, who is a student at the Indraprastha College for Women and hails from Tajpur village in Bihar's Gaya district said her organisation continues to guide her approach to campus politics. In contrast, the RSS-affiliated Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) has nominated Aryan Maan, who hails from Bahadurgarh in Haryana and is pursuing Library Science at Delhi University. He graduated from Hansraj College.

Maan, who has been active in student movements against fee hikes and in support of sports infrastructure, said his inspiration to contest comes from ABVP's ''year-round activism'' and his belief that student politics must go beyond elections.

''My vision is to make Delhi University a more inclusive, student-friendly and globally competitive institution. If elected, I want to ensure affordable and safe transportation through subsidised metro passes, universal digital access with free Wi-Fi and better hostel facilities for the growing student population,'' he told PTI.

He also pledged to focus on sports infrastructure, accessibility audits for students with disabilities and increased research support. On the rollout of the four-year undergraduate programme, Maan said he would push for new hostels, classrooms and expanded libraries, particularly in the east and west campuses.

Calling money and muscle power a ''blot'' on student politics, he stressed that ABVP would continue to promote issue-based campaigning. ''If elected, I will ensure more democratic practices by strengthening feedback mechanisms, holding student-parliament style sessions, and making decision-making transparent. Our goal is to make DU's student politics a model where ideas, not money, decide elections,'' he said.

With two women in the fray and ABVP pitching a reform-focused campaign, the 2025 DUSU polls appear set to widen the conversation on what student politics should stand for -- shifting the narrative from muscle power towards the everyday realities of campus life.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)