The long-awaited Jahangirnagar University Central Students’ Union elections were held on Thursday -- after more than three decades -- in a largely peaceful atmosphere but the polls were overshadowed by boycotts by most panels and allegations of vote rigging.
At least five student panels out of the eight boycotted the elections, demanding the formation of a new election commission and a fresh schedule, amid the allegations of irregularities.
The boycotting panels included those from Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal, eight progressive organisations, including a faction of Bangladesh Chhatra Union-backed Sampritir Oikya, another faction of Bangladesh Chhatra Union and Samajtantrik Chhatra Front (Marxist)-formed Sangsaptap Parshad, cultural groups-sponsored Swatantra Ongikar Parishad, and Samajtantrik Chhatra Front (Leninist).
By the afternoon, the JCD panel formally withdrew from the race, alleging ballot stuffing, voter list manipulation, and misconduct at polling stations.
The other panels echoed the same demands, including the dissolution of the election commission and a fresh election under new authorities.
The joint panel of eight progressive student groups under the banner of Sampritir Oikya also expressed ‘no confidence’ in the election commission.
Later at night, JCD activists staged a protest march on the campus, demanding that the vote be scrapped and rescheduled.
Chanting slogans such as ‘Boycott, Boycott, Boycott JUCSU, We want fresh polls’, protesters marched from Murad Chattar to the Chourangi area on campus.
JUCSU general secretary candidate from JCD Tanzeela Hossain Baishakhi claimed that ballot papers and Optical Mark Recognition machines were supplied by a company linked to the Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, despite earlier objections.
‘We were not allowed to enter Tajuddin Ahmed Hall. In female halls, some students voted multiple times, and pro-Shibir journalists misbehaved with our candidates’, she said.
‘This has become a fraudulent and farcical election,’ she said.
She also alleged multiple balloting and intimidation inside female dormitories.
JCD JUCSU vice-president candidate Sheikh Sadi Hasan accused Islami Chhatra Shibir activists of creating an atmosphere of fear and claimed that 10–20 per cent of ballots had been pre-marked.
The panel submitted a written complaint to the university authorities alleging that entries of their polling agents were delayed while candidates were barred from inspecting centres.
Three Bangladesh Nationalist Party-leaning teachers monitoring the election —Nazrul Islam of mathematics, Shamima Sultana of Bangla, and Nahreen Islam Khan of geography and environment — pulled out of their polls duties before the polls closed at 5:00pm, citing irregularities and partisan influence in the elections.
Nazrul Islam, also the provost of Fazilatunnesa Hall, said that 15 to 20 other teachers had walked out of their election responsibilities in frustration, though his claim could not be independently verified.
Chief election commissioner Professor Moniruzzaman denied allegations that ballot papers and counting machines were procured from Jamaat-linked vendors.
He said that five companies were evaluated and insisted that no party received preferential treatment.
He also assured that defective ballots would be invalidated.
JU proctor and election commission member-secretary AKM Rashidul Alam described the vote as ‘largely peaceful’, appreciating the cooperation from the administration and security agencies.
Over 1,500 police, Border Guard Bangladesh, Ansar and army personnel were deployed to maintain the law and order.
Shibir VP candidate Arif Ullah dismissed JCD’s boycott as an attempt to avoid the discredit of ‘certain defeat’ while his panel’s GS nominee Majharul Islam alleged that ‘every untoward incident so far has involved JCD’.
Gano Abhyutthan Rakkha Andolan sponsored Swatantra Shikkharthi Sangsad-nominated VP candidate Abdur Rasid Jitu echoed the same as Shibir.
‘They have boycotted the polls as they have no courage to accept defeat’, he said.
Candidates from other panels also voiced concerns.
Shikkharthi Oikya Forum accused Shibir activists of distributing campaign leaflets near polling centres and entering female halls while Sampritir Oikya alleged that the administration was favouring a ‘vested group’.
At JU’s 15 No. female hall, voting was suspended for nearly an hour after complaints that voter-marking ink was removable.
The polling at the Tajuddin Ahmed Hall station was also briefly postponed due to disputes over missing photos in voter lists.
Despite the controversies, many students described the election — the first since 1992 — as historic.
‘Whatever the result may be, this election itself is a victory for students’, said Tasnim Jahan, an undergraduate student of Pritilata Hall.
The voting began at 9:00am in a festive atmosphere under tight security, with 11,919 registered students eligible to vote across 21 residential halls on the campus at Savar more than 30 kilometres away from the Dhaka city.
A total of 179 candidates contested for 25 JUCSU posts, including nine for vice-president, nine for general secretary, and 16 for the assistant general secretary.
Eight panels from different student organisations joined the race.
The JUCSU elections were held a day after the Dhaka University Central Students’ Union elections were held on Tuesday.
Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal, Bangladesh Islami Chhatra Shibir-sponsored Samonnito Shikkharthi Jote, Bangladesh Ganotantrik Chhatra Sangsad-backed Shikkharthi Oiyka Forum, Gano Abhyuthan Rokkha Andolan-backed Swatantra Shikkharthi Jote, eight progressive organisations, including a faction of Bangladesh Chhatra Union-backed Sampritir Oikya, another faction of Bangladesh Chhatra Union, and Samajtantrik Chhatra Front (Marxist)-sponsored Sangsaptap Parshad, cultural groups-backed Swatantra Ongikar Parishad, and Samajtantrik Chhatra Front (Leninist) formed their panels to vie in the elections.
Sheikh Sadi from JCD, Arifuzzaman Uzzal from Shikkharthi Oiyka Forum, Arifullah Adeeb from Samonnito Shikkharthi Jote, Abdur Rasid Jitu from Swatantra Shikkharthi Jote are among the 10 JUCSU VP candidates.
A left-leaning panel, Sampritir Oikya, however, had to vie in the elections without any vice-president candidate as the authorities cancelled the candidacy of the panel’s VP aspirant Amartya Ray John on the charge that his regular studentship had expired.
Tanzeela Hossain Baishakhi from JCD, Touhid Md Siam from Shikkharthi Oiyka Forum, and Mazharul Islam from Somannito Shikkharthi Jote are among the nine JUCSU GS candidates.
Independent candidate national football player Mahmudul Hasan Kiron was running for sports secretary and was gaining traction.
The university’s 21 residential halls together account for 315 positions, 15 in each of the hall unions.
Of them, 102 candidates face no rivals and will be officially declared elected, while no nominations were filed for 63 seats, leaving only 150 positions to be contested in the elections.
The last JUCSU polls were held in 1992 before being put on hold for more than three decades amid political unrest.
The newly elected JUCSU will send five representatives to the university’s 93-members senate body, restoring a student voice in governance after more than three decades.
The JUCSU election commission estimated the preliminary figures after analysing the balloting at the 21 voting centers at the university halls.
Of the 11,897 eligible voters, 7,934 students cast ballots across 21 residential halls, marking a turnout of nearly 67 per cent.
The highest participation was recorded at Shaheed Tajuddin Ahmed Hall polling station, where 752 of the 914 students voted, followed closely by Kazi Nazrul Islam Hall with 715 of the 993 ballots cast.
Rokeya Hall, one of the largest female dormitories, saw 680 votes cast from the 957 registered students.
Results were expected to be announced late Thursday night through manual counting.