Aligarh: The Aligarh Muslim University Students' Union (AMUSU) elections returned after eight years, with results declared on Friday morning, November 6, following polling across the university's faculties on November 5 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and counting that began at 7 p.m., Careers360 reported. Mohd Noman Ashraf, a research scholar, was elected president with 7,797 votes, defeating his nearest rival Mohd Intkhab, who received 3,676 votes — a margin of 4,121 votes. India Education Diary, reporting the results declared by the chief election officers, carried the same figures.

Source: Careers360

The vice-president's result made history: law student Nashra Naim secured 7,091 votes and became the first woman to win one of the union's three principal posts, Asian News Hub reported. Mohammad Hamdan, a BTech student, was elected honorary secretary with 8,385 votes. Nine candidates had contested the president's post, seven the vice-president's and three the honorary secretary's, while 46 candidates were in the fray for cabinet positions and 70 for AMU Court membership.

7,797votes for President Noman Ashraf
7,091votes for Vice-President Nashra Naim
8,385votes for Secretary Mohammad Hamdan
8 yearsgap since the last union election

Polls followed 20 days of student protests

The university had not held students' union elections since 2018, when the last election was conducted for the 2018-19 academic session. This year's election followed nearly 20 days of student protests demanding restoration of the elected union and a fixed poll date; the agitation began on September 21 and included an indefinite hunger strike by student leader Yasir Fahad. It ended after the administration agreed to hold elections on November 5 and replaced proctor Mohammad Naveed Khan with Mohammad Nafees Ahmad Ansari. The schedule was announced on October 9 after a meeting between Vice-Chancellor Naima Khatoon and student representatives.

Ten cabinet members were also elected, led by Muhammad Ahmad Khan with 10,794 votes. In the separately held Women's College Students' Union (WCSU) elections, Anam Riyaz was elected president with 806 votes, Ayesha Khan vice-president with 1,090 votes and Maryam Jan honorary secretary with 862 votes. Eleven student representatives were elected to the AMU Court from different faculties. The AMUSU and Court results were declared by Chief Election Officer Prof. Javaid Talib, and the WCSU results by Prof. Nazia Hasan, India Education Diary reported.