DUSU (Delhi University Students’ Union) election is the time to relish the University’s characteristic aura. Unfortunately, unaffiliated colleges are denied this. Here’s what the marginalised community misses out on:
- Monetary Relief
As students of colleges unaffiliated with DUSU, we are considered ineligible for receiving payments. While other students are entitled to receive customised stationery branded with misspelled names of VIPs in return for a mere promise of votes, we cannot even avail free eatables and movie tickets. Flyers do not lay around for us. Instead, we have to recycle our precious newspapers as mats for our books and butts. Also, is there any point in paying taxes when we can’t be a part of litter production that the government is paid to clean up?
- The Grand Annual Carnival
Delhi University election is that happening time of the year when the campus transforms into a maha mela nagri. Colleges are adorned with festoons containing names of the sponsors. Campaigners throw flyers like confetti to convey their existence, through which students familiarise with previously unknown contesting candidates. Jeeps loaded with peppy youngsters block the roads to make room for more peppy youngsters jigging to the tune of the dholwala. Sadly, we hardly get to experience these festivities.
- Awareness Programmes
General knowledge is not at our tips, thanks to the fact that nobody recites party manifestos and ballot numbers to us. Similarly, we are neither explicitly or casually cautioned about the wrongdoings of other parties, nor advised preventive measures to ensure upcoming developments that are in store for us. We understand that elections should not concern us since we do not play a part as voters, but it is a matter of shame that we are not up-to-date regarding DUSU affairs, considering that today’s student politicians are prospective future change makers of the country.
- Anti Monotony Therapy
Election-themed tiles on walls and floors do not endearingly follow us to our washrooms. We have to bear through the entirety of our lectures without recurrent or perpetual sloganeering keeping us refreshed. DUSU goons aren’t interested to entertain us with their acts of hooliganism, due to which our college remains devoid of live brawling and vandalism. We do not of encounter real-life Bollywood situations like enthusiastic young students sticking out of open jeeps and sunroofs. Our colleges lack young vibes due to minimal graffiti. This is not what our college life was supposed to be like, our expectations have gone down the drain.
- Social Inclusion
Even as Freshers, we were never insisted to accept the immense unconditional hospitalities that our future mentors had to offer, let alone being the recipients of welcome garlands on our first day of college. Unsolicited reminders, good mornings, WhatsApp group adds and Facebook tags never warm our hearts. Even the compulsory participation for campaigning isn’t expected from us. Pamphlets are never handed out to us in person except for when we are mistaken as desirable a.k.a. potential voters. We are also deprived of habitual celebrity visits that we always longed since we started keeping a track of the personalities occurring on campus posters and hoardings. Basically, we are treated unworthily of love.
In a nutshell, we are being subjected to the discrimination that no college deserves to suffer. This clearly defies the spirit of an ethical democracy.
Feature Image Credits: DU Beat
Ananya Acharya
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