Delhi University has made it mandatory for parents or guardians of candidates contesting the upcoming students' union polls to sign a surety bond of Rs 1 lakh, effectively holding them responsible for any violation of norms during campaigning.
This came days after the university informed the Delhi High Court that there was no prerequisite to deposit money to contest its student union elections.
It made the submission before Justice Mini Pushkarna, who was hearing a plea alleging a new notification by the university mandates Rs 1 lakh security bond as a precondition for contesting the DU student union (DUSU) polls.
The surety bond meant for the parents or guardians of nominees of the DUSU polls, to be executed on a non-judicial stamp paper, makes them liable to pay Rs 1 lakh for any act or omission on the part of the candidates or supporters, including defacement of premises or any other public property during campaigning or even thereafter.
This measure for holding elections was discussed at a meeting of the DUSU Advisory Committee, chaired by Chief Election Officer Raj Kishore Sharma. "In line with the high court's decision, a notification regarding the affidavit requirement will be issued soon," he told PTI.
The university is also putting in place stricter mechanisms to curb defacement during campaigning.
A dedicated portal has been created where colleges can upload complaints of violations of the Lyngdoh Committee guidelines.
The advisory committee will review the cases and may impose penalties, including temporary suspension of campaigning or cancellation of candidature.
According to Delhi University rules, only handwritten posters are allowed on designated "walls of democracy" inside campuses. Colleges have been directed to ensure strict compliance with these rules.
Sharma further confirmed that the upcoming DUSU elections will be conducted using electronic voting machines (EVMs), while voting for college counsellors will continue to be held through ballot papers.
The university had ordered new EVMs, but since those are not yet ready, the polls will be held with existing machines currently under testing.
To ensure peaceful conduct of the polls, monitoring teams have been deployed across colleges to keep a check on defacement and maintain order on campuses, officials added.
Last week, the Delhi High Court disposed of a petition filed by AISA activists Anjali and Abhishek Kumar challenging a DU notification that appeared to mandate a Rs 1 lakh bond for DUSU elections and Rs 25,000 for college-level polls.
The petitioners had argued that such a provision amounted to "monetary discrimination" that would exclude students from humble backgrounds, especially women.
The university, in a notification issued on August 8, had directed that contestants of DUSU polls must submit the bond as a preventive measure against property defacement during campaigning.
The measure was introduced following last year's DUSU elections, when the results were delayed for nearly two months after the high court took note of widespread defacement.
The declaration of results was allowed only after the university assured the court that stricter preventive measures would be implemented this year.
DUSU elections for 2025-26 are scheduled for September 18, and the counting of votes will be held the next day.
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