Odisha's Student Union Elections: A Historic Comeback After Eight Years
Overview of the Elections
Bhubaneswar: This year marked a significant event in Odisha as student union elections took place across 13 universities and 346 colleges, ending an eight-year break. The elections saw fierce competition among various student organizations, with the Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) securing wins at BJB Autonomous College and Rajdhani College. Meanwhile, the Biju Chhatra Janata Dal (BCJD) triumphed at Rama Devi Women’s University and Ravenshaw University.
The elections were not without their challenges; some institutions faced disruptions leading to cancellations, while others had candidates elected without opposition. Voting concluded at 2 PM on Thursday, and counting commenced shortly after. By 6:45 PM, results were announced for 153 colleges, with a total of 1,398 candidates elected.
Out of these, 756 candidates were elected unopposed, while 642 emerged victorious in contested elections. The counting process continued at various colleges and universities, with voter turnout showing significant variation.
Madhusudan Law University achieved the highest voter turnout at 78.87%, followed by Utkal University at 68.69% and Maa Manikeshwari University at 67.24%. Utkal University reported 2,609 votes, while Maa Manikeshwari University had 2,817 votes. Dharanidhar University saw 2,051 votes, resulting in a turnout of 65.77%.
Maharaja Sriram Chandra Bhanja Deo University recorded 917 votes with a turnout of 64.03%. Fakir Mohan University had 1,047 votes, translating to a turnout of 53.30%, while Sambalpur University reported 977 votes and a turnout of 54.24%.
Vikram Dev University had 2,225 students participating, resulting in a turnout of 50.86%. Ravenshaw University recorded 3,777 votes, with a turnout of 47.73%. At Rama Devi Women’s University, 1,550 students voted, leading to a turnout of 30.27%.
Khallikote University saw 1,310 votes, with a turnout of 26%, while Brahmapur University had the lowest turnout at 19.53%, with only 423 students casting their votes.
As counting continued at several institutions, results were still pending from many campuses, with expectations building as the process progressed.