2 weeks Ago By Ruchi Mishra
The Delhi High Court, on Wednesday, ruled that the counting of votes for the Delhi University Students’ Union (DUSU) elections held in September will be allowed the day after all defacement of public property by candidates is cleaned up. The court emphasised that while elections are a celebration of democracy, they should not become a “festival of money laundering.” A division bench, comprising Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela, directed the DUSU candidates to clean up the campus buildings that were defaced during the election campaign.
The court clarified that its intention was not to obstruct the election process but to send a strong message that vandalism and public property damage will not be tolerated. Earlier, on September 26, the court had suspended the vote counting and results announcement for both the DUSU and individual college elections, pending the removal of campaign-related defacement, including posters, hoardings, and graffiti. The court had stressed that the counting could proceed only after the affected areas were restored.
In its response to the court’s concerns last month, Delhi University indicated that it had circulated guidelines to candidates, emphasising adherence to regulations and the Lyngdoh Committee’s recommendations designed to uphold the integrity of student elections. However, as per the reports, even on the day of voting, the recommnedations were not followed by any student body and their candidates. “How about you clean up the mess? We will permit the vote counting the very next day after the location is cleaned,” remarked the bench during the hearing of an application submitted by two DUSU candidates.
The candidates assured the court that the university will be cleaned and the defaced areas repainted, in compliance with the guidelines. The application was part of an ongoing case, filed by advocate Prashant Manchanda, seeking legal action against DUSU candidates and student groups involved in damaging public property. The petition demanded that the offending parties remove the graffiti, repair the vandalised areas, and undertake beautification measures.
The court set the next hearing for October 21, allowing the petitioner, the MCD, Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC), and the candidates additional time to submit status reports on the cleanup efforts..
