The Aaditya Thackeray-led Yuva Sena, the youth wing of the Shiv Sena (UBT), on Friday won eight of the ten seats in the senate election of the University of Mumbai, and was set to win the remaining two seats.
The much-delayed election for ten seats was held on September 24 following a Bombay High Court directive.
Speaking to India Today TV, Sheetal Sheth, one of the Shiv Sena (UBT) eight winners, said, “Various efforts were made by the government so that these elections did not happen because they knew that once this election happened they would lose. This is just a signal of what is going to happen in the upcoming state election.”
The eight Yuva Sena leaders who won in senate elections included Pradeep Sawant, Alpesh Bhoir, Milind Satam, Mayur Panchal, Sneha Gawli, Sheetal Devrukhkar Sheth, Dhanraj Kohchade and Shashikant Zore.
Congratulating the winning candidates, Aditya Thackeray wrote, in a post on X, “10 on 10 it is! Once again!! To all those who voted for us, and to all the Shiv Sena + Yuva Sena colleagues, a big thank you for your trust, support, effort and blessings. We have not only repeated but bettered our performance at the Mumbai University Graduate Senate Elections. 100 per cent strike rate. From here, we start the election victory streak!”
In the senate elections, the RSS-affiliated Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) also fielded ten candidates, while the student wing of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena contested one seat.
Nearly 55 per cent turnout was recorded in the election, that were held after nearly two years.
The senate is the highest elected decision-making body and watchdog of Mumbai University. It has representatives of teachers, principals and college managements as well as registered graduates, and is empowered to pass the varsity’s budget.
There is a ban on students’ council polls in Maharashtra. Senate elections of the University of Mumbai are unlike the students’ union polls of Delhi University or Jawaharlal Nehru University, where those contesting polls have to be students of the respective varsities.
The Bombay High Court had last week directed that the senate elections be held on September 24 after staying a state government circular postponing them.
