What ABVP’s Panjab University win means for 2027 Punjab polls

With Punjab elections less than six months away, the BJP received a shot in the arm after its student wing, the ABVP, retained the post of president of the Panjab University students' council for the second year in a row. The results of students' union polls, particularly ahead of assembly elections, are often viewed as an indicator of the political mood among young voters - a bloc that has been disgruntled with the BJP of late.

As per the official results declared on Tuesday, ABVP's Ankit Bidhan defeated AAP student outfit ASAP's Adil Brar by 512 votes. It is the first time in the history of Panjab University that ABVP has won the top post in the students' council election for two consecutive terms. Last year, the ABVP won the poll for the first time in nearly 50 years.

The victory assumed added significance as the Students' Organisation of India (SOI), the student wing of the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), had extended support to the ABVP. This comes amid buzz that the BJP and the SAD are looking to revive their alliance ahead of the 2027 polls. The SAD had parted ways with the BJP in 2020 amid a dispute over the now-withdrawn farm reform laws.