Chandigarh: The first Panjab University Senate election after months of agitation over restoration of the elected body has produced a new mix in the Registered Graduates constituency, with only one of the three prominent faces of the student-led protest making it to the 15-member Senate, while seven elected candidates will enter the house for the first time.Jodh Singh emerged as the only successful candidate among the three protest-linked faces, finishing ninth after 37 rounds of counting. He secured 2,980 votes, including 106 transferred to him during the counting process. Ramanpreet Singh, a prominent face of the agitation, was eliminated with 1,182 votes, while Rimaljot Singh finished with 307 votes.The three had emerged as visible faces during the prolonged campus agitation over restoration of the elected Senate. Their decision to contest marked a shift from protest politics to seeking representation within the university’s formal statutory structure. While Jodh secured a seat, Ramanpreet and Rimaljot could not cross the required threshold through preferential voting.Seven of the 15 elected candidates — Shanker Choudhary, Surjit Singh, Sukhdev Singh Sirsa, Jodh Singh, Amanendra Mann, Gurraj Singh and Mehar Singh — are first-time senators. The other eight are returning members, including Mukesh Kumar Arora, Ashok Goyal, Sandeep Singh, Simranjit Singh Dhillon, Lajwant Singh Virk, Kapil Sharma, Naresh Gaur and Varinder Singh.The election took place against the backdrop of a prolonged dispute over the university’s Senate. The previous Senate’s term ended in Oct 2024, after which the issue of holding elections became a major point of contention on campus. The agitation eventually culminated in the revival of the election process and notification of the poll schedule.The Registered Graduates constituency, however, continued to see relatively low participation. Turnout stood at 14.6%, marginally higher than the 14.5% recorded in 2021. It was around 19% in 2016 and 26.1% in 2012.A total of 60,044 ballots were polled this year, of which 53,969 were valid and 6,075 invalid. The contest had 51 candidates for 15 seats, with counting conducted through the single transferable vote system.For the protest movement, the outcome means one of its prominent electoral entrants will now have a seat in the Senate, while the graduate constituency has gained seven first-time members alongside experienced senators.
