Image source: Instagram/@nashranaim_for_vicepresident
In the Aligarh Muslim University Student Union elections, Mohammad Noman Ashraf, resident of Saharsa, Bihar, has won the post of President, while Nashra Naeem has been elected Vice President.
Whereas Mohammad Hamdan won the post of Honorary Secretary.
In the same year, the Students Union was reinstated after the students' movement in Aligarh Muslim University. Before this, the last elections of AMU Students Union were held in 2018.
The most important thing about the election is that Nashra Naeem is the first woman to be elected Vice President of the Students Union in the 105 year history of this institute.
Noman Ashraf, who won the post of President, also believes that this time the situation has changed with the victory of Nashra Naeem.
In this election, voting was held for the posts of student representatives of Aligarh Muslim University Students Union, Women's College Students Union and AMU Court.
Who is Mohammad Noman Ashraf?
Image source: Noman Ashraf
Mohammad Noman, who won the post of President, is a PhD scholar in the History Department of Aligarh Muslim University. He is a resident of Saharsa district of Bihar and has been a university student since 2017.
Speaking to BBC, Noman Ashraf said that he had contested the elections on issues like employment and placement opportunities for students, safety of women, nepotism and corruption within the university and saving the university land.
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On his victory, he said that the politics of regionalism has been a part of this university for a long time, but this time he has challenged this politics.
Noman said, "This time there were a large number of new students in the elections and they were not even aware of the different lobbies of the university. Therefore, students voted keeping in mind the vision and ideas of the candidates."
According to Noman, the students gave priority to university-related issues rather than joining any regional lobby."
Recently, during the campaign, a video of Noman also went viral on social media, in which he was seen talking about Gaza, Palestine and Sudan.
Talking on this, he said, "Is it a crime to raise voice for the oppressed people of India or all the oppressed people of the world? Be it Gaza, Palestine, Bangladesh or anywhere in the country, if atrocities or barbarity is taking place, then if we do not raise our voice for them from this platform, then who will?"
Nashra Naeem's historic victory
Women candidates have created history by winning many posts in the Aligarh Muslim University Student Union elections.
According to the results declared on Saturday, he won six out of 13 posts, including five cabinet posts and one vice-president's post.
The five elected women cabinet members are Hania Khan, Areeba Dilshad, Shazia Shamim, Anika Rumman Rahi and Shaheen Parveen.
Nashra Naeem became the first woman to be elected Vice President of the Student Union in the 105-year history of this institute.
According to the document released by the MU public relations officer, he got 7,091 votes and defeated his nearest rival, who got 5,818 votes.
This LLB student, resident of Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh, has a long association with the university.
She has done her higher secondary studies from a 'Women's College' of AMU, her father has also been a student of this university.
Image source: NOMAN ASHRAF
Speaking to The Indian Express, Nashra said, "Initially I had said that I wanted to contest the election for president. But my father knows the university very well. He said it would be very difficult for me, as he felt that the campus might not accept a woman president so soon after the union is reinstated."
She said, "I took this into consideration because I am contesting the elections to win, so I decided to contest for the post of Vice President. But my family has supported me a lot throughout this journey."
Noman Ashraf, who won the post of President, said that in the earlier student union elections also, women had contested for the post of Vice President as well as President, but they were not successful. This time this situation has changed with the victory of Nashra Naeem.
He said, "Aligarh has given the message that anyone can lead a university."
Why is AMU's students union election important?
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Students associated with Aligarh Muslim University have been vocal in raising their voice on political and social issues.
Talking about the importance of student union elections, Noman said, "We believe that the emotions and feelings of the minority community are attached to this university."
"In such a situation, a strong and outspoken voice is raised in their favor, which also leads in the future. Therefore, this election becomes important, because it promotes minority leadership."
The last student union elections in the university were held in 2018. Voting for the student union took place in AMU after a gap of eight years.
In fact, the administration had suspended the Students Union since 2019 citing violence, indiscipline and law and order situation on the campus.
Students started protesting in Aligarh Muslim University from 21 September 2026 demanding student union elections. During this time, MA student Yasir Fahad sat on hunger strike.
Meanwhile, the students alleged that the administration tried to end the movement by putting pressure on them. After this, along with the demand of the student union, he also demanded the removal of the proctor.
After about 20 days of agitation, the university administration accepted the demands on 9 October.
Proctor Professor Naved Khan was removed and Professor Nafees Ahmed Ansari was appointed as the new proctor and it was announced to hold Students Union elections on 5 November 2026.
Published by Collective Newsroom for the BBC.
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