Tribal Muslim Woman Heads Historic Left-Ambedkarite Alliance in JNU Elections

New Delhi: In a landmark political development, four major student organisations in Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) have come together to form the largest-ever Left- Ambedkarite alliance in the campus history. Students Federation of India (SFI), Birsa Ambedkar Phule Students Association (BAPSA), All India Students Federation (AISF), and Progressive Students Association (PSA) have joined hands in what they describe as a “historic and necessary unity” to counter the “authoritarian ABVP- Admin nexus” gripping the university.
Making history, the alliance has announced Tayyaba Ahmed, a Tribal Muslim woman and long-time activist from SFI, as its Presidential candidate—the first time a candidate from such a background has contested for the top post in JNUSU. Tayyaba, a student from the School of Social Sciences, has been actively involved in multiple student-led movements on campus. Joining her on the panel are Ram Niwas from BAPSA as the General Secretary candidate, a research scholar from CSLG; Santosh Kumar from AISF for the post of Vice-President, a PhD scholar from the School of Language, Literature and Culture Studies; and Nigam from PSA as the Joint Secretary candidate, an MA student and outgoing Councillor from SLL&CS.
The alliance claims it has emerged not merely as an electoral strategy but as the product of continued student struggles, particularly citing last year’s movements like #ShutDownDoS which saw unified action against administrative decisions and fee hikes. It accuses certain other campus groups of compromising with the administration while the Left- Ambedkarite front stood firm in resistance. The formation also draws from successful models of similar alliances across Indian campuses. In Hyderabad Central University, SFI -ASA -DSU alliances have led the union since 2011-12. In 2025, they played a central role in resisting a controversial land acquisition by the Telangana government. Similar examples in Pondicherry University and Central University of Gujarat are being cited as proof that Left -Ambedkarite collaborations can effectively challenge Hindutva -aligned forces in educational spaces.
“We are not just coming together for an election. This is about fighting for the soul of JNU, about standing up to commercialisation, communalisation, and caste oppression,” said an SFI representative during the alliance announcement.
Calling this unity a fight for the “soul of JNU,” the alliance urges the student community to vote in large numbers. With a historic slate and a broad ideological front, the Left-Ambedkarite alliance seeks to reshape the political landscape of JNU and resist the growing influence of the ABVP- Admin combine.