In a city defined by politics, the Delhi University Students Union (DUSU) elections are seen as a stepping stone to the national stage. This fame is not unfounded, and that is why we give you a list of 5 renowned names that started their political stories here as former DUSU Presidents.
1. Arun Jaitley
Widely known to be the most intellectual man in the BJP, Arun Jaitley currently serves as the Minister for Defense and Minister for Finance in the Lok Sabha Government. He has a degree in Commerce from the Sri Ram College of Commerce. He is by far the most prominent politician to have won the DUSU election, having won the second-ever election in 1974 on an ABVP ticket. He is an avid blogger and is known to personally update his Twitter account.
2. Vijay Goel
Another alumnus of SRCC, Vijay Goel currently serves as the President of the Delhi state unit of the BJP. He has been a Member of the 13th Lok Sabha from the Chandani Chowk constituency. Vijay Goel was DUSU President in the year 1977-78, again on an ABVP ticket. He is known for his social causes which include the Toy Bank; a not-for-profit bank that collects toys from donors, refurbishes them and then redistributes the toys amongst the underprivileged children in Delhi.
3. Vijay Jolly
Vijay Jolly did his Bachelors in Commerce from SRCC followed by M.Com from the University of Delhi. Jolly was elected as the DUSU President for the year 1980-81 as a member of ABVP. He is currently the All India Incharge and Prabhari of Tripura State, BJP and All India Incharge and Convenor of Foreign Cell, BJP. Vijay made it to the headlines back in the year 2011, when he allegedly demanded removal of then Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dixit on the grounds of corruption in the CWG.
4. Ajay Maken
Famous for his ‘dichotomous’ conflict with Mani Shankar Aiyyer, Ajay Maken is currently the General Secretary of the Indian National Congress. He was previously Minister of Sports and Minister for Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation in the UPA Government.A graduate from Hansraj College, he won the DUSU elections in 1985. He is currently the only person from B.Sc. (Chemistry) Final Year to ever win this election.
5. Alka Lamba
Alka Lamba did her B.Sc from Dyal Singh College, University of Delhi followed by M.Sc and M.Ed from St. Stephen’s College. Alka contested for the DUSU President’s post in 1995 on NSUI’s ticket and won by huge margins. Taking her political career to new heights, Alka was announced the All India Girls Convenor, NSUI in 1996 and she became the all India NSUI President in 1997. After working for the Indian National Congress for over two decades, Lamba quit the party on December 26th, 2013 to volunteer for Aam Aadmi Party.
With this list of the former DUSU Presidents who made it well into the bigger arena of Indian politics, we wish all the very best to the newly elected DUSU representatives of 2014-15. May you not only accomplish the manifested promises but also have a healthy career.
Ashish Mathew
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