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Delhi High Court issues notice on a PIL seeking 50% women’s reservation in DUSU polls, while questioning its legal basis and claims linking representation to election violence.

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday, 2 September, issued notice to the Central government, the University Grants Commission (UGC) and the University of Delhi (DU) on a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking 50 per cent reservation for women in the Delhi University Students’ Union (DUSU) and college students’ union elections.

A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia asked the respondents to file their responses. The matter has been listed for further hearing on November 27, after the upcoming DUSU elections scheduled for September 18.

The PIL, filed by advocate and former DU student Shabana Hussain through advocate Ashu Bidhuri, argues that women constitute approximately 53 per cent of DU’s student population but remain significantly underrepresented in elected student bodies. Between 2013 and 2024, only eight of the 32 elected DUSU representatives were women, while no woman has held the post of DUSU President since 2009. Since the beginning of DUSU elections in 1954, only 10 of 68 presidents have been women.

The petition alleges this disparity partly to the electoral environment surrounding campus politics, citing alleged money and muscle power, violence, intimidation, sexist remarks, cyberbullying and social media trolling as factors that can discourage women from contesting elections.

It further argues that inadequate representation can affect the attention given to issues particularly affecting women students, including sexual harassment, campus safety, hostel facilities, curfew timings and sanitary infrastructure.

During the hearing, however, the Bench questioned the legal basis for granting such reservation. The Court asked the petitioner to identify the statute or provision from which a right to reservation in DUSU elections could be derived. “We are here to protect your rights. We can’t create a right,” the Bench observed.

The Court also questioned the petitioner’s argument that greater representation of women would reduce violence during elections. When the counsel argued that female students “follow the law”, the Bench responded by asking whether the argument implied that women were “less violent”.

The petition also refers to the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, which provides for one-third reservation for women in the Lok Sabha and state legislative assemblies and recommendations of DU’s DUSU Election Reforms Committee for rotational reservation of an office-bearer post.

ABVP’s Deepika Jha celebrates her victory as DUSU Joint Secretary in 2025.

Image Credits: The New Indian Express

Bishakha Gogoi

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A visually impaired Campus Law Centre student is contesting the DUSU elections with AAP’s student wing ASAP, spotlighting representation for students with disabilities ahead of September polls.

A visually impaired law student at Delhi University’s Campus Law Centre has entered the race for the Delhi University Students’ Union (DUSU) elections, bringing renewed attention to the question of disability representation in campus politics.

Pankaj Dhingra is campaigning under the Association of Students for Alternative Politics (ASAP), the student wing affiliated with the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), ahead of the DUSU polls scheduled for September 18. His decision to enter the fray has drawn attention on campus, given that DUSU elections have historically been contested almost entirely by able-bodied candidates from mainstream student outfits.

Dhingra’s campaign centres on the difficulties faced by students with disabilities in accessing academic opportunities and taking part fully in campus life, a concern ASAP says has long been sidelined in student politics. The group described his candidature as an attempt to widen the scope of campus democracy and create space for voices that are usually left out of the conversation.

ASAP said its larger campaign is built around what it terms alternative politics, an approach centred on the everyday concerns of ordinary students rather than conventional electoral messaging. The organisation maintained that students with disabilities should not be viewed only as beneficiaries of welfare schemes, but as capable of taking on leadership roles within the union. It added that the DUSU result should also be assessed by how fairly representation is spread across the student body.

The candidacy comes as Delhi University finalises arrangements for the 2026-27 DUSU polls. Nominations close on September 10, followed by scrutiny the same day, with withdrawal of candidature allowed until September 11. Voting takes place on September 18, and results are due on September 19. Prof. Raj Kishore Sharma has been named chief election officer, with Prof. Rajesh Singh as chief returning officer.

Image Source – Dainik Bhaskar