All-India Student Association (AISA) clean sweeps Jawaharlal Nehru University students' union poll

Sunday 04th of November 2007 The Left-supported All India Student Association swept the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) Students' Union polls by winning all the four central posts Sunday. The victory also starred a Sudanese national who won one of the councillor's posts. Sandeep Singh was elected president, while Shephalika Shekhar won the position of vice president. AISA's other candidates Pallavi Deka and Mohammed Mobeen Alam grabbed the posts of general secretary and joint secretary respectively. AISA is supported by the Communist Party of India-Marxist Leninist (CPI-ML). Said AISA president Awadhesh: 'Sandeep defeated Youth For Equality (YFE) candidate Babita Sharma with a thumping majority of 300 votes.' 'Shephalika, Pallavi and Mobeen also defeated their YFE rival candidates Sujeet Kumar, Swastik Rao and Kumar Abhijeet with a handsome margin,' he added. AISA'S victory Sunday dashed the hopes of Youth For Equality, an independent students' group that took birth during the anti-reservation movement last year. They made their debut in the JNU Students' Union polls and had garnered a handsome percentage of votes, but could not manage to win any of the four key posts. Khalid Abdallah, 29-year-old Sudanese student who contested the polls under the AISA banner, became the first African to win an election in the JNU'S history. 'I have won the councillor post at the School of International Studies (SIS). Of the 23 candidates contesting for five councillor posts, I have won one seat,' an elated Abdallah told IANS. 'Of the 600 votes, I got 192 votes. Of the five candidates who won the five posts, I stood at number three,' said the M.Phil scholar, adding that he joined the fray to learn politics in India and restore democracy back home in Sudan. After the results were declared, jubilant AISA supporters celebrated their victory with music bands and chanting of slogans. A total of 36 candidates from several groups like the Left-backed Students Federation of India (SFI), Congress-backed National Students Union of India and the BJP-backed Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), vied for the top four posts. The elections were held Friday and a huge 68 percent of students turned up to exercise their franchise. The JNU Students' Union election is considered a training ground for students aspiring to enter the world of politics. The varsity has churned out many national-level politicians, Communist Party of India-Marxist general secretary Prakash Karat being one among them.