Senate polls: GU vote counting to resume

AHMEDABAD: Students leaders belonging to National Students Union of India (NSUI) and Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) got into a scuffle inside the Gujarat University vice-chancellor's chamber. The leaders had gone there to find out what decision the university had taken over counting of votes of the recently-held senate elections.
The university has decided to complete the counting of votes on Sunday and has sought adequate police protection for this, said GU officials.
ABVP was the first to cry foul over ballot boxes found unsealed during counting of votes and had demanded a re-election. Gujarat University had stopped counting of votes earlier this week after violence broke out during the exercise. On Saturday, leaders of the two main student unions had gone to the university to find out when counting would resume.
At the university, on Saturday, students belonging to NSUI and ABVP started abusing each other. There were angry arguments which led to blows being exchanged. The shirt and kurta of two leaders got torn in the ensuing melee. Vice-chancellor M N Patel, who was present in his chamber, had to be escorted to the ante-chamber for his safety.
Gujarat University had sought legal opinion on the senate elections after counting of votes was stopped on Tuesday. Legal experts had said that counting cannot be stopped midway. Even the VC does not have a right to stop counting of votes. Only courts can stop counting, the experts had said.
Patel was supposed to take charge as Gujarat University VC after the elections to avoid expected controversies. But he took charge February 21 and could not avoid the violence that had occurred during the elections.