SFI Stronghold Sees Major Shift: ABVP Secures All 12 College Union Seats

The Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) has secured all 12 positions in the student union at Government Sanskrit College, Tripunithura, after candidates from other student organisations did not file nominations for this year’s election. The development marks a major shift at a campus where the Students’ Federation of India (SFI) had maintained a strong presence for several decades.

The 12 ABVP candidates were the only nominees for the available union positions after the nomination process concluded on September 17. As a result, they secured the positions unopposed. However, the formal declaration of the college union is scheduled for September 29 under the Mahatma Gandhi University election process.

The college has a relatively small student population of around 130 and is affiliated with Mahatma Gandhi University. According to the college principal, last year’s election was contested, with ABVP winning 10 of the 12 positions while SFI candidates secured two class representative posts. This year, no candidates from SFI, KSU or other student organisations entered the contest.

The development follows a significant improvement in ABVP’s position on the campus. The organisation had previously won a majority of seats at the college, and this year’s uncontested outcome gives it all 12 union positions. ABVP Kerala state secretary Yadhu Krishnan described the outcome as evidence of growing student support, while those claims remain the organisation’s own characterization of the result.

The Government Sanskrit College outcome has drawn attention beyond the campus because of its history of SFI dominance. With ABVP candidates securing all available positions without a contest, the college has emerged as a notable development in Kerala’s student-union politics. The formal constitution of the union is expected following the scheduled September 29 declaration.