Chief returning officer hails Ducsu election as ‘model’ others can follow
'We promised to deliver, and we have kept that promise,' says Chief Returning Officer Prof Mohammad Jasim Uddin
The long-awaited Dhaka University Central Students' Union (Ducsu) and hall union elections were held yesterday (9 September) after a six-year hiatus, with the chief returning officer describing the exercise as a "model" that other universities and colleges can follow.
Announcing the results at 9am this morning (10 September) at the university's Nabab Nawab Ali Chowdhury Senate Bhaban, Chief Returning Officer Prof Mohammad Jasim Uddin said, "We have long been deprived of democracy and our right to vote. Whenever the nation falls into crisis, Dhaka University leads the way. We promised to deliver, and we have kept that promise."
He added, "By not holding elections for years, we forgot many important practices. Through this election, we have created a model that other universities and colleges can benefit from."
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This year's Ducsu polls saw 471 candidates, including 62 women, contesting for 28 posts. Among them, 45 competed for the vice-president (VP) position, 19 for general secretary (GS) and 25 for assistant general secretary (AGS). Of the women candidates, five vied for VP, one for GS and four for AGS.
A total of 39,775 students were eligible to vote, with 20,873 male and 18,902 female voters. Voting was conducted across eight centres and 810 booths.
The voting took place in a festive spirit, witnessing a striking 78.33% voter turnout.
In the results, the Shibir-backed panel "Oikyoboddho Shikkharthi Jote" won all three top positions.
Md Abu Shadik Kayem became the Ducsu VP, securing 14,042 votes and defeating Chhatra Dal-backed candidate Md Abidul Islam Khan, who polled 5,708.
SM Farhad won the GS post with 10,794 votes, against Chhatra Dal-supported Shaikh Tanvir Baree Hamim, who got 5,283.
Meanwhile, Md Mohiuddin Khan received 11,772 votes, defeating Chhatra Dal-backed Tanvir Al Hadi Mayed, who got 5,064.
Abidul rejected the results of the Ducsu election, terming it "planned fraud." In a Facebook post at around 2:30am, he alleged that the outcome was manipulated and did not reflect the actual votes cast by students.
However, his panel's GS candidate, Hamim, accepted the results, even as he referred to "some irregularities."
Besides, Umama Fatema, a VP candidate from the "Sotontro Sikkharthi Oikkya" panel, announced a boycott of the Ducsu election, describing it as a "shamelessly rigged election."
In a Facebook post at 3:24am, she wrote, "This was a completely shamelessly rigged election. After August 5, Dhaka University administration has gifted the nation a disgrace. This is an administration run by Shibir."
