AMUSU has had an elected President since 1952. Before that, the Vice-Chancellor was always the union’s President. The union began in 1884 as the Siddons Union Club, became the Muslim University Union under the AMU Act of 1920, and has been dissolved or suspended several times since, most recently from about 2007 to 2010. This page lists every AMUSU President, Vice-President and Secretary we could verify, from 1884 to the 2026-27 election.
AMUSU presidents at a glance
- First elected President: Ahmad Saeed, 1952
- Most famous office-bearer: Arif Mohammad Khan, President 1972-73, later Governor of Kerala and Bihar
- Last elected President: M. Salman Imtiaz, 2018-19
- Next President: result of the 2026-27 election on 5 November 2026
List of AMUSU presidents, vice-presidents and secretaries
Click a session for its full results, cabinet and Court members. “Not known” means we have not yet found a reliable source for that post.
| Session | President | Vice-President | Secretary |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-27 | Result on 5 November 2026 | ||
| 2018-19 | M. Salman Imtiaz | Hamza Sufiyan | Huzaifa Aamir Rashadi |
| 2017-18 | Mashkoor Ahmad Usmani | Sajad Subhan Rathor | Mohammad Fahad |
| 2016-17 | Faizul Hasan | Nadeem Ansari | Nabeel Usmani |
| 2015-16 | No election held | ||
| 2014-15 | Abdullah Azzam | Syed Masoodul Hasan | Shahzeb Ahmad |
| 2013-14 | No union after the President was expelled in May 2013 | ||
| 2012-13 | Shahzad Alam (Barni) | Tausif Alam | Manzar Hussain |
| 2011-12 | Syed Sharique Ahmad | Abdul Quadir Jilani | Hamad Nabi |
| 2010-11 | Abu Affan Farooquee | Syed Umer Ahmad Qadri | Aamir Qutub |
| 2007 to 2010 | No union: dissolved after campus violence | ||
| 2006-07 | Nafees Ahmad | Not known | Not known |
| 2005-06 | Abdul Hafeez | Not known | Not known |
| 2004-05 | Naseem Ashraf | Not known | Not known |
| 2000 to 2004 | No union: not renewed, partly for lack of an approved constitution | ||
| 1999-2000 | Nadim Asrar | Not known | Not known |
| 1998 | Not named | Not known | Mohammad Asim (General Secretary) |
| 1997 | Union reconstituted on 28 August 1997 | ||
| 1990 to 1994 | Elections held under VC Prof. Naseem Farooqui | ||
| 1982 to 1990 | No union: dissolved by VC Saiyed Hamid in 1982 | ||
| 1979 | Not known | Not known | Wasim Ahmad |
| Late 1970s | Javed Habib | Not known | Not known |
| 1974-75 | Not known | Not known | Azam Khan |
| 1972-73 | Arif Mohammad Khan | Not known | Not known |
| 1971-72 | Not known | Not known | Arif Mohammad Khan |
| 1968 | Sardar Ali | Not known | Not known |
| 1967 | Mohammad Adeeb | Not known | Not known |
| 1966 | Mohsin Raza | Not known | Not known |
| 1965 | Mufti Mohsin Akhtar | Not known | Not known |
| 1963 | Anis (Aneesur Rahman) Sherwani | Not known | Not known |
| 1962 | Basir Khan | Not known | Not known |
| 1961 | Qazi Jamaluddin | Not known | Not known |
| 1960 | Ishtiaq Abidi (unopposed) | Not known | Not known |
| 1959 | Jalees Hameedi | Not known | Not known |
| 1958 | Abidullah Ghazi (unopposed) | Not known | Not known |
| 1957 | Asif Ali | Not known | Not known |
| 1955 | Mobashir Mohammad Khan | Not known | Not known |
| 1954 | Sahabzada Nayyar Qadar | Not known | Not known |
| 1952 | Ahmad Saeed, the first elected President | Not known | Not known |
| 1946-47 | Not known | A. T. M. Mustafa | Not known |
| 1913-18 | Not known | Zakir Husain (MAO College students’ union) | Not known |
| 1884 | Siddons Union Club founded | Khwaja Sajjad Husain | Syed Mohammed Ali |
Famous AMUSU office-bearers
Photos: Arif Mohammad Khan: Prime Minister’s Office, Wikimedia Commons, GODL-India; Azam Khan: Md Umar Khan, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0; Zakir Husain: India Post, Government of India, Wikimedia Commons, GODL-India; Mohammad Ali Ashraf Fatmi: Government of India, Wikimedia Commons, GODL-India; Nafees Ahmad: Linuxroot0786, Wikimedia Commons, CC0; Mashkoor Ahmad Usmani: Marghoob2018, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped.
A short history of AMUSU
1884 to 1951: the Siddons Union and the Muslim University Union
The Siddons Union Club was inaugurated on 26 August 1884 at the MAO College, modelled on the Cambridge Union. Khwaja Sajjad Husain was its first Vice-President and Syed Mohammed Ali its Secretary. Under the AMU Act of 1 December 1920, the club became the union of the new Aligarh Muslim University. Mahatma Gandhi became its first life member that year. Zakir Husain, later President of India, was Vice-President of the students’ union while at the MAO College between 1913 and 1918. Until 1952, the Vice-Chancellor served as the union’s President.
1952 to 1981: elected presidents and the AMU Act agitation
A new constitution came into force in 1952, and Ahmad Saeed became the first elected President. The 1950s and 1960s saw lively contests, two unopposed presidents (Abidullah Ghazi in 1958 and Ishtiaq Abidi in 1960) and the shortest-lived cabinet, under Basir Khan, which resigned within months of taking charge in October 1962. From 1970, the union led the agitation over the AMU Act. Arif Mohammad Khan was Secretary in 1971-72 and President in 1972-73, and Azam Khan, union Secretary, was arrested in 1975 and spent 17 months in Aligarh Jail.
1982 to 2010: dissolutions and gaps
Vice-Chancellor Saiyed Hamid dissolved the union and abrogated its constitution in 1982. Elections returned in the early 1990s, and the union was reconstituted on 28 August 1997. It was not renewed in the early 2000s, partly because the union had no approved constitution, and presidents were elected again from 2004-05 to 2006-07. After campus violence, the union was dissolved in about 2007. Students protested for its restoration through 2009 and 2010, and AMU set up committees to apply the Lyngdoh Committee rules.
2011 to 2026: Lyngdoh-era elections
Elections resumed in January 2011 under the Lyngdoh rules. Unions were elected in 2011-12, 2012-13, 2014-15, 2016-17, 2017-18 and 2018-19, with no election in 2013-14 and 2015-16. After 2018-19, no union was elected until AMU announced the 2026-27 election, with polling on 5 November 2026. You can vote for your candidates in our reader poll.
Frequently asked questions
Who was the first elected president of AMUSU?
Ahmad Saeed was the first elected President of AMUSU, in 1952. Before that, the Vice-Chancellor was always the union’s President.
Who was the last AMUSU president?
M. Salman Imtiaz was the last elected AMUSU President, for 2018-19. The next President will be elected on 5 November 2026.
Was Arif Mohammad Khan AMUSU president?
Yes. Arif Mohammad Khan was AMUSU Secretary in 1971-72 and President in 1972-73. He later became a Union Minister and Governor of Kerala and Bihar.
Was Azam Khan in the AMU Students’ Union?
Yes. Azam Khan was elected Secretary of the AMU Students’ Union in 1974 and was arrested in 1975 during the AMU Act agitation.
Why were there no AMUSU elections from 2007 to 2010?
The union was dissolved after violence on campus in about 2007. Elections resumed in January 2011 under the Lyngdoh Committee rules.
Sources: AMUSU: Its Glorious Past (2007), by Syed M. Naseem and Dr Mohsin Raza; Prof. Syed Ali Nadeem Rezavi, September 2026; Wikipedia; Newslaundry, 2017; Wikipedia: Arif Mohammad Khan; Muslim Mirror; National Herald; Wikipedia: Zakir Husain; Ummid.com, January 2011.