Over 6,800 candidates contest college polls

Bhubaneswar: A total of 6,891 candidates are in the fray for the 2026-27 students’ union elections in Odisha, with the high-voltage campaign set to end on October 14, according to data released by the Higher Education (HE) Department on Tuesday.

The department further revealed that as many as 359 higher education institutions, including 346 colleges and 13 universities, have submitted nomination data for the election. A total of 8,785 candidates had filed their nominations, comprising 8,334 candidates from colleges and 451 from universities.

“During scrutiny, nominations of 1,216 candidates were rejected. These included 1,161 candidates from colleges and 55 from universities. Following the scrutiny process, 7,569 nominations were declared valid, including 7,173 from colleges and 396 from universities,” the department informed.

Subsequently, 443 candidates withdrew their nominations. Of them, 405 were from colleges and 38 from universities. The department noted that following the completion of the nomination and withdrawal process, a total of 6,891 candidates will contest the election. The final tally includes 6,533 candidates from colleges and 358 from universities.

“Meanwhile, 1,597 college representatives have been elected unopposed, including 872 male and 725 female representatives. In universities, 42 representatives have been elected unopposed,” the department said.

It is worth noting that the campus elections have been cancelled at various colleges across the State due to the violence and other disturbances. Leaders of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), the Biju Chhatra Janata Dal (BCJD), the student wing of the opposition BJD, and the Congress-affiliated National Students’ Union of India (NSUI), student wings of Left parties are leaving no stone unturned to secure victory in the students’ union elections.