Vote count for JUCSU election finished

The vote count for Jahangirnagar University Central Students’ Union (JUCSU) and hall union elections has been finished. The confirmation came from Pro-Vice Chancellor (Administration) Professor Sohel Ahmed at around 2:15pm on Saturday. However, the results are yet to be announced.

Chief Election Commissioner Professor Dr Md Moniruzzaman told reporters in the afternoon that the counting had ended and preparations were underway for declaring the results. He expressed hope that the final outcome would be published around 7pm. Earlier, another election commissioner, Professor Lutful Elahi, had expected the results to be announced by 2pm.

Explaining the delay, the CEC said the votes were counted manually instead of using OMR machines as per students’ demand. With nearly 650 candidates contesting, the process took longer. The count was also suspended for some time on Friday following the death of a teacher.

Polling took place across 21 halls on Thursday from 9am to 5pm. However, on the eve of voting, a dispute arose over the ownership of the firm supplying the OMR machines, prompting the commission to opt for manual counting. In protest, several panels backed by Chhatra Dal and left-leaning groups boycotted the election. Out of eight panels in total, five withdrew, while 111 candidates from three panels remained in the race.

On polling day afternoon, Chhatra Dal announced its withdrawal, followed by four left-backed panels. The same day, three teachers from the pro-BNP Teachers’ Forum also boycotted the polls.

The death of teacher Jannatul Ferdous on Friday morning cast a pall of grief over the campus. However, candidates and students alleged that slow progress in the count was also fuelled by faculty politics and factionalism. Counting, which had been suspended for nearly three hours, resumed later at night.

At around 9pm on Friday, election commissioner and president of the pro-BNP Teachers’ Forum, Professor Dr Mafruhi Sattar, resigned citing irregularities. At a press briefing, he said, “Numerous irregularities have taken place in the election, which has undermined the process. Since my views were not accepted by the commission, it has become impossible for me to continue in this role.”

Speculation has since grown on campus that internal disputes within the pro-BNP Teachers’ Forum have influenced the situation. Many also believe anti-VC teachers are trying to seize the moment amid the unrest surrounding the election.