Bhubaneswar: Union home minister Amit Shah on Saturday hailed ABVP’s performance in Odisha’s student union elections, saying its victory in the state’s 13 universities, following successes in Panjab University and Delhi University, showed that the country’s youth stood firmly with the ‘nation first’ ideology. In a post on X, Shah described the result as a strong response to forces spreading “lies, illusions and chaos”.BJP national president Nitin Nabin said the results reflected the youth’s faith in nationalism and national interest while rejecting politics that sought to spread disorder in the name of youth power. He said the younger generation, inspired by ideals of Swami Vivekananda, was committed to nation-building and achieving the goal of a developed India by 2047.BJD president Naveen Patnaik, however, claimed BCJD had won more than 60% of seats in colleges and around 50% in universities despite BJP and state govt allegedly using money power, muscle power and unfair practices.In a statement, BJD said Gen Z voters had rejected BJP and its student wing ABVP and voted in favour of what it described as transformative governance under Naveen. The party claimed BCJD candidates won in 170 colleges and five universities and accused BJP of circulating misleading figures to the media and its central leadership.
