Patna: Call it students’ indifference to polls or some flaw in the electoral process, but not a single nomination was received on Monday, the first day of filing nominations for the much-hyped Patna University Students Union (PUSU) elections. Voting for 27 offices, including five key offices and 22 council members, is scheduled to be held on March 29. Even though the PU administration made elaborate arrangements for facilitating nominations by students at the Jayaprakash Narayan Senate Hall (formerly known as Wheeler Senate Hall) and all the teachers and non-teaching staff engaged in receiving nominations reached the venue well on time (10am), no contestant turned up until 3pm. PU chief election officer Rajneesh Kumar told this newspaper that nomination papers can be filed for two more days, on Tuesday and Wednesday. More than 100 nomination papers were already purchased by students since the commencement of their sale before Holi. The scrutiny of nominations will take place on March 20 and the withdrawal of candidature will take place on March 24. The polling will be held at 42 booths in 14 zones from 8am to 2pm on March 29. Counting of votes will be held just after the polling is over and the results are likely to be announced late in the night. It may be mentioned here that student organisations having allegiance to different political parties have already decided to enter the election arena by fielding candidates for key offices. The Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), Chhatra Janta Dal(U), All India Students Federation (AISF), Students Federation of India (SFI), Chhatra RJD, All India Students Association (AISA), Chhatra Jan Adhikar Party and National Students Union of India (NSUI) have started canvassing to garner the electorate’s support for their candidates.
