From protests to Jucsu polls: Why are JU women stepping back

Women students of Jahangirnagar University (JU) have long played a vital role in protests against injustice. From the anti-rape movement of 1999 to the mass uprising of 2024, they stood at the frontlines, raising their voices and leading movements.

But the picture looks different ahead of the upcoming Jahangirnagar University Central Students' Union (Jucsu) election, which is set to take place on 11 September, after a gap of 33 years.

This time, women appear to be stepping back from the ballot.

Although nearly half of JU's 11,919 voters are women, their participation in nominations is far lower.

For the 25 central union posts, a total of 276 nomination papers were submitted. Of these, 57 were from women, and 43 of them were for reserved seats only.

While no woman is contesting the vice-president position, only two are running for the general secretary post.

The gap is also visible at the hall level. Eleven male dormitories submitted 289 nomination papers, while 10 female dormitories submitted only 128.

In many halls, the required number of candidates for various positions has not been met, which may result in several posts going uncontested. 

After the final candidate list is published on 29 August, the number of women candidates may fall even further.

Sayeeda Meher Shaoli, a student from the Anthropology Department, said, "One major reason for the low participation is that women have not been able to build their 'political agency'."

"In the 2024 mass uprising, women felt a welcoming environment to fight for their rights. But that environment did not last," she said.

"Even today, when decisions are made or stakeholder meetings are held, women's opinions are often ignored. This makes them feel sidelined. Women are not being encouraged to feel comfortable in political roles, nor are they given proper support. That is why many are less interested in running in Jucsu," she added.

Philosophy student Tanzin Tammi pointed to another reason.

"Women are not properly recognised anywhere after the mass movement of 2024. They remain unrecognised everywhere. Instead, they face constant social media tagging, bullying, and personal attacks in some instances. People often choose to talk about a woman's personal life rather than her political role," she said.

"Take the example of Rumeen Farhana. Her significant contributions in politics are ignored, while her personal life is made the focus of criticism. Similarly, when Tasnim Zara left behind a well-established career to join politics, she was misrepresented on social media instead of being respected. Such experiences discourage young women from entering politics," Tammi added.

"When they see this, they fear facing the same humiliation. And if someone voices an opinion against the mainstream, she is quickly labelled as a 'Shahbaghi'. My question at that time remains 'why?'

"I think all this pushes women to withdraw themselves. Those are some of the reasons why we are seeing fewer women candidates in Jucsu and other political scenarios," Tammi concluded.