NN ONLINE:
Independent vice-president candidate Umama Fatema rejected the DUCSU election results and launched a sharp critique of Islami Chhatra Shibir, accusing the group of “betraying the nation” through widespread rigging.
In a Facebook post around 5:45 am on Wednesday, after polls had closed and counting extended into the night, Umama—a prominent figure from last year’s July Uprising and head of the Independent Students Unity panel—wrote: “This rigged election will be etched in Bangladesh’s history as a black night. Fourteen hundred people have died for a rigged election! What kind of history, what kind of system? In the meantime, so many families have been left destitute.” She alleged that Shibir—the student wing of Jamaat-e-Islami—employed “novel ways of manipulation” to secure a dramatic victory in the polls.
“For their petty interests, Islami Chhatra Shibir has betrayed the nation in a way that will be remembered in history,” she proclaimed.
Earlier, at around 3:30 am, Umama had already announced a boycott of the polls, stating: “Boycott! Boycott! I boycott the DUCSU. A completely shameless, rigged election.” She added, “The DU administration has brought shame to the nation after Aug 5. It is an administration reared by Shibir.”
Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal VP candidate Abidul Islam Khan had also boycotted the polls, and Chhatra Dal protested against the election authority over alleged “pre-filled” ballots in favor of the Chhatra Shibir-backed panel. Reports also surfaced of Chhatra Dal protests in front of the Dhaka University Club regarding alleged overnight ballot stuffing.
Shibir’s Abu Shadik Kayem swept to victory in the DUCSU vice-president race, winning more than 14,000 votes, while his panel colleague SM Farhad secured the general secretary post. They achieved margins well ahead of their nearest rivals in most halls.
Rejecting the rigging allegations, VP-elect Shadik told reporters after the count that the election had occurred in a festive and peaceful atmosphere. “Some are trying to sabotage the election,” he stated, urging the administration to act against those attempting to derail the process.
