After sweeping the Delhi Assembly elections, Aam Aadmi Party is now hoping to make inroads into Delhi University Students Union. Its students' wing, Chhatra Yuva Sangharsh Samiti (CYSS) has expressed interest in contesting the Delhi University elections this year, scheduled to be held in September. However, a final decision will be taken only after the group prepares an action plan of which the party approves.
In a meeting held on Wednesday, CYSS declared that "conditions are ripe to plunge into elections". CYSS president Anupam Kumar said that when it was established in 2012, the agenda was not to just contest elections which is why CYSS has teams across universities in Delhi including IIT, JNU, Jamia, IP and Ambedkar. "Our membership runs into thousands and we have a lot of support among youth. We conducted meetings in 40 colleges and were told that there is sufficient support for the party to seriously consider the DUSU elections. However, while we are keen to contest elections, a final decision will be taken only in a few days," he said.
AAP's Delhi convener Dilip Pandey said that CYSS has been asked to submit its plan at the earliest to enable the party to take a decision. "CYSS has a lot of goodwill but that is not sufficient to fight an election. A lot will depend on its preparation, its organization etc. If the party supports its decision, CYSS will also have to shoulder the responsibility if it does not do well," he said.
Affiliated to AAP through its ideology, CYSS is seeking to provide an alternative to those disappointed by the performance of left parties. Sources within the party say that like the parent organization, CYSS is hoping to clean up politics on the campus but also add in the same breath that just like BJP was AAP's main opposition in the city, CYSS will meet its main challenge in ABVP, BJP's student wing.
