LUCKNOW: Leaders are born on campuses, they say. Taking a cue, hundreds of students, affiliated with different student wings, are busy contributing their bit in the Lok Sabha elections, despite the statewide ban on student union elections in universities and colleges.
While some of these student leaders are excellent poets and slogan writers, others are shouldering the responsibility of war room, mobilizing youth vote or acting as foot soldiers of their respective political outfits.
There are many who are handling social media platforms of politicians or have been entrusted with the task of conducting door-to-door campaigns.
TOI talked to a few of these student leaders.
ABVP members take govt work to people’s doorstep
Clad in dhoti and kurta, Vindhyavasni Shukla, 21, attends classes in Lucknow University’s defence studies department and then rushes back to the party office to make a framework for how all ABVP student leaders will divide themselves and move in different directions of the state to strengthen party’s vote bank, with special focus on youth.
“I will be doing door-to-door campaigning in Mohanlalganj, Salempur, Unnao and Shravasti Lok Sabha seats. I wear dhoti and kurta to university to make students understand our party’s message that advocates staying connected to roots and popularising Indian tradition and beliefs across the country,” said Vindhyavasni, who almost held a month-long protest for student union election revival.
He said that recently PM Narendra Modi had also urged content creators to share stories on India’s culture, heritage, and traditions with the world and I feel by adopting Indian traditional attire I am also doing my bit.
“I have been working in the interest of students, be it of Lucknow University or any other college or university. Have been on a hunger strike and continuously protested for student issues like fees, scholarship problems and others which no other student outfit affiliated with other political parties did. Hence through my work, I am adding youth votes for my party,” he added.
Like Shukla, other active student leaders have also been assigned their role.
“I am shouldering the responsibility of communicating all govt schemes, working on statistics on how BJP government schemes benefited society at large,” said BA student Abhijeet Kumar.
ABVP student leaders Shashi Prakash Mishra and Utkarsh Tiwari who have good oration and writing skills are busy working on taglines, social media messages and poems for the party.
At NSUI war rooms, members join booth brigade
“All NSUI student representatives in universities and colleges of different districts are setting up booth brigades, the members of which will not just be deputed at voting booths but will also campaign to bring youth to the booth to exercise their franchise,” said LU NSUI president Prince Prakash.
“In war rooms, we have already assigned tasks to student leaders, while some are sending Rahul Gandhi’s message, others are highlighting BJP’s anti-democratic work or popularising the party through Facebook and Instagram reels, and YouTube videos,” he said.
“Not just boys but girl NSUI representatives are also busy making slogans and caricatures advocating how Congress will be a people’s party which guarantees employment for youth, zero religion and caste politics, development goals for the country and others,” he added.
Another NSUI student leader and MA (sociology) student Vishal Singh said, “I along with other student leaders will campaign for our leader in Lok Sabha constituencies like Barabanki, Moradabad and Varanasi and will work towards connecting people with the party by highlighting the work done in Congress regime in the past.”
“We have made slogans and posters of our leader Rahul Gandhi highlighting his efforts to empower the youth, farmers, women and laborers through Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra,” he said.
Samajwadi Chhatra Sangh leaders
“Be it Ekana cricket stadium, Lucknow Metro or Lucknow riverfront, all became a possibility during Samajwadi Party rule in Uttar Pradesh. We will run a picture campaign of these places on our social media platforms highlighting that opposition party rule failed to do such development which is visible and needs no evidence,” said SCS student leader Mahendra Yadav.
He said that apart from these student leaders have already left for campaigning in different directions, and our war rooms, booth in-charges and door-to-door student campaigners list are ready.
While some of these student leaders are excellent poets and slogan writers, others are shouldering the responsibility of war room, mobilizing youth vote or acting as foot soldiers of their respective political outfits.
There are many who are handling social media platforms of politicians or have been entrusted with the task of conducting door-to-door campaigns.
TOI talked to a few of these student leaders.
ABVP members take govt work to people’s doorstep
Clad in dhoti and kurta, Vindhyavasni Shukla, 21, attends classes in Lucknow University’s defence studies department and then rushes back to the party office to make a framework for how all ABVP student leaders will divide themselves and move in different directions of the state to strengthen party’s vote bank, with special focus on youth.
“I will be doing door-to-door campaigning in Mohanlalganj, Salempur, Unnao and Shravasti Lok Sabha seats. I wear dhoti and kurta to university to make students understand our party’s message that advocates staying connected to roots and popularising Indian tradition and beliefs across the country,” said Vindhyavasni, who almost held a month-long protest for student union election revival.
He said that recently PM Narendra Modi had also urged content creators to share stories on India’s culture, heritage, and traditions with the world and I feel by adopting Indian traditional attire I am also doing my bit.
“I have been working in the interest of students, be it of Lucknow University or any other college or university. Have been on a hunger strike and continuously protested for student issues like fees, scholarship problems and others which no other student outfit affiliated with other political parties did. Hence through my work, I am adding youth votes for my party,” he added.
Like Shukla, other active student leaders have also been assigned their role.
“I am shouldering the responsibility of communicating all govt schemes, working on statistics on how BJP government schemes benefited society at large,” said BA student Abhijeet Kumar.
ABVP student leaders Shashi Prakash Mishra and Utkarsh Tiwari who have good oration and writing skills are busy working on taglines, social media messages and poems for the party.
At NSUI war rooms, members join booth brigade
“All NSUI student representatives in universities and colleges of different districts are setting up booth brigades, the members of which will not just be deputed at voting booths but will also campaign to bring youth to the booth to exercise their franchise,” said LU NSUI president Prince Prakash.
“In war rooms, we have already assigned tasks to student leaders, while some are sending Rahul Gandhi’s message, others are highlighting BJP’s anti-democratic work or popularising the party through Facebook and Instagram reels, and YouTube videos,” he said.
“Not just boys but girl NSUI representatives are also busy making slogans and caricatures advocating how Congress will be a people’s party which guarantees employment for youth, zero religion and caste politics, development goals for the country and others,” he added.
Another NSUI student leader and MA (sociology) student Vishal Singh said, “I along with other student leaders will campaign for our leader in Lok Sabha constituencies like Barabanki, Moradabad and Varanasi and will work towards connecting people with the party by highlighting the work done in Congress regime in the past.”
“We have made slogans and posters of our leader Rahul Gandhi highlighting his efforts to empower the youth, farmers, women and laborers through Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra,” he said.
Samajwadi Chhatra Sangh leaders
“Be it Ekana cricket stadium, Lucknow Metro or Lucknow riverfront, all became a possibility during Samajwadi Party rule in Uttar Pradesh. We will run a picture campaign of these places on our social media platforms highlighting that opposition party rule failed to do such development which is visible and needs no evidence,” said SCS student leader Mahendra Yadav.
He said that apart from these student leaders have already left for campaigning in different directions, and our war rooms, booth in-charges and door-to-door student campaigners list are ready.
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