DUCSU polls today, festive vote expected

DU Correspondent :

The 2025 ‘Dhaka University Central Students’ Union (DUCSU) election and the Hall Parliament Election will be held today, September 9 according to the announced schedule. Yesterday, Sunday, was the last day of campaigning for the DUCSU elections.

Throughout the day, there was a strong presence of candidates and a lively movement of workers across the university campus. Candidates from each panel rushed to the students to present their manifestos. Candidates were seen seeking votes by distributing leaflets.

A total of 810 booths have been set up evenly across 8 polling stations in this election. This number ensures that every voter can cast their vote and that a voter can complete the voting process in an average of 10 minutes.

Voting will be completed for all voters present at the booth by 4 pm, and even voters standing in line will have the opportunity to vote. Additional buses will be provided to transport all students to the campus today. All bus services will run as per the schedule to ensure timely attendance of voters.

Voters participating in the election will not be able to enter the polling station with bags, mobile phones, smart watches, any type of electronic devices, water bottles, and any liquids.

The Election Commission has made preparations assuming that about 40,000 voters will come to vote. Voting will continue from 8 am to 4 pm without a break. According to the schedule, DU students will cast a total of 41 votes on September 9, including 28 for DUCSU and 13 for the parliamentary elections.

All entrances to the university will be closed to the public for 34 hours starting from 8pm on Monday night, which will remain in effect until 6am on Wednesday.

The university’s public relations department said that the entrances to Dhaka University (Shahbag, Palashi, Doel Chattar, Shibbari Crossing, Fuller Road, Udayan School and Nilkhet) will be closed to the public.

However, students, teachers and officials and employees of Dhaka University with valid ID cards will be able to enter, and family members of teachers, officials and employees will be able to enter the campus by showing a photocopy of their teachers’, officials’ and employees’ identity cards, and no other vehicles will be able to enter the campus except vehicles with university stickers and vehicles engaged in emergency services (ambulances, doctors, patients, law enforcement agencies, journalists and fire service vehicles).

Visually impaired students will also vote in the DUCSU elections in Braille. Returning Officer Associate Professor Sharmin Kabir said, “For the first time, we have printed ballot papers in Braille for students who are visually impaired and can read Braille.”

The Election Commission has banned the carrying of all types of legal weapons on campus from September 8 to September 10.
Chief Returning Officer Professor Dr. Mohammad Jashim Uddin said in a press briefing on Monday that there is no security concern surrounding the DUCSU elections.

To ensure the smooth conduct of the Dhaka University Central Students’ Union (DUCSU) and Hall Parliament elections and to ensure flawless security on the campus, 2,096 police, dog squads, SWAT teams, specialized teams, and plainclothes DB police will be on duty for security on the campus, DMP Commissioner Sheikh Md. Sajjad Ali said at a press conference on Monday. He said, “There is no fear regarding the DUCSU and Hall Parliament elections.”

Dhaka University Vice Chancellor Professor Dr. Niaz Ahmed Khan spoke about the overall issue of the DUCSU elections at a press conference on Monday. He said, “this year’s DUCSU elections are very significant for three reasons. First, it is a demand for the lives of students, which has gradually become a national demand.

Second, DUCSU’s activism is directly related to the values and traditions of the mass uprising. Third, this election has brought together various stakeholders and strengthened mutual relations.”
The total number of voters in this election stands at 39,775. Of these, 20,873 are male students and 18,902 are female students after the resolution of objections and corrections.

Among the student voters, 1,295 are in Amar Ekushey Hall, 1,303 in Kabi Jasimuddin Hall, 2,222 in Jagannath Hall, 1,606 in Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Hall, 1,998 in Dr. Muhammad Shahidullah Hall, 1,762 in Fazlul Haque Muslim Hall, 2,027 in Bijoy Ekattor Hall, 1,751 in Freedom Fighter Ziaur Rahman Hall, 1,957 in Shaheed Sergeant Zahurul Haque Hall, 664 in Salimullah Muslim Hall, 1,499 in Masterda Surya Sen Hall, 1,377 in Sir A.F. Rahman Hall and 1,402 in Haji Muhammad Muhsin Hall.

Among the female voters, there are 5,641 in Rokeya Hall, 4,084 in Shamsun Nahar Hall, 2,103 in Bangladesh-Kuwait Friendship Hall, 4,434 in Kabi Sufia Kamal Hall, and 2,640 in Fazilatunnesa Mujib Hall.
A total of 471 candidates are contesting for 28 positions in this year’s DUCSU elections. 62 are female candidates of these.

Political parties like Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal, Islami Chhatra Shibir, Left Alliance, Islami Chhatra Andolan, Democratic Chhatra Sansad, and Chhatra Odhikar Parishad have fielded their own candidates in the election. The number of independent candidates is also over a few hundred.

DU Metro Station are closed from Monday afternoon due to the DUCSU elections. The station will remain closed from 4 pm today and for the entire day on September 9, said Dhaka Mass Transit Company Limited (DMTCL), the company operating the metro rail. In a notification issued by DMTCL, it was urged to adopt alternative means of transportation near Dhaka University Station.

DUCSU elections have been held 37 times since the establishment of Dhaka University and this election is the 38th time. The last DUCSU election was held in 2019. However, that election was also held after the High Court verdict. In that election, Nurul Haque Nur of the General Student Rights Protection Council was elected as the VP (Vice President) and Golam Rabbani of the (now banned) Chhatra League was elected as the GS (General Secretary).

In independent Bangladesh, Mujahidul Islam Selim of the Bangladesh Chhatra Union was elected as the VP after winning the 1972 DUCSU election and Mahbubur Zaman was elected as the GS. Although 19 elections were supposed to be held from independence to 1990, only 7 were held. After that, DUCSU elections seem to have become a thing of the past since 1991.

For a long time, DUCSU elections were demanded through agitations, protests, and strikes. After that, the High Court was approached, and in 2019, a High Court verdict paved the way for DUCSU elections. However, there were allegations of excesses by the Chhatra League in that election.