The commission for the elections to the Dhaka University Central Students’ Union and hall unions on Friday said that the commission was probing the allegations over printing ballot papers in an unprotected way at Gausul Azam Market in the capital’s Nilhket area.
A returning officer for the elections and the taskforce chief professor Golam Rabbani said, ‘The election commission itself is probing the matter and no separate committee has been formed.’
He added that they were asking vendors regarding the incident and expressed hope that the commission would hold a detailed press conference within a day or two to present the matter to all.
The office of the chief returning officer on Thursday night issued a press release saying that it was giving utmost importance to the allegations over ballot paper printing in an unprotected way after controversies over the elections intensified following a television channel report that revealed that the DUCSU elections’ ballot papers were printed at an unprotected printing press at Gausul Azam Market, Nilhket, near the university campus.Â
DU teachers belonging to the pro-Bangladesh Nationalist Party White Panel on Friday demanded re-election to the DUCSU and hall unions if the allegations were proved true.
In a statement, signed by the panel convener Morshed Hasan Khan, joint conveners Abdus Salam and Abul Kalam Sarker, they said, ‘If the allegations are proved true, the election results must be suspended and a new, free, fair and impartial election must be held.’
‘If otherwise, the legitimacy of this election will be questioned,’ they said.
They also demanded that the authorities should give a clear explanation on the allegations of rigging in the DUCSU elections.
‘If necessary, an impartial investigation committee should be formed with members nominated from within the university or outside the university and the committee’s report should be published as soon as possible,’ they said.
Md Sajib Hossain, who vied for the post of an executive member in DUCSU elections, at a press briefing in front of Madhu’s Canteen on the campus on Friday raised questions about the elections’ legitimacy and fairness.
He said that the university authorities earlier claimed that no ballot papers were printed at Nilkhet and the ballot papers were printed under proper security, but recent media reports proved that such claims were baseless.
Bangladesh Islami Chhatra Shibir-backed panel won 23 of the 28 posts, including the vice-president, general secretary and assistant general secretary posts in the DUCSU elections, marked by allegations of irregularities, including rigging and violations of the electoral code of conduct.
The elections were held on September 9 after a six-year gap.
MRM Engineering and Anza Corporation reportedly printed 86,000 and 1,53,000 ballot papers respectively in unprotected presses for the DUCSU polls.
Earlier, candidates from different panels for DUCSU polls and student organisations, including Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal-backed panel, Boishommo Birodhi Sikkharthi Sangsad-backed panel, Swatantra Sikkharthi Oikyo panel, and Bangladesh Students’ Union raised allegations over the issue.
