DUCSU VP Nur defends demand for fresh polls, says he ‘lost focus’ at Hasina meeting

DUCSU Vice-President Nurul Haque Nur has tried to defend his demand for fresh elections a day after promising to cooperate with Sheikh Hasina’s government in a meeting with the prime minister.

He says he “lost concentration” after seeing many Bangladesh Chhatra League leaders at the Ganabhaban.    

The new leaders of the Dhaka University Central Students’ Union or DUCSU and hall unions met the prime minister at her residence at her invitation.

Nur, who upset his rival candidate from the ruling Awami League’s student affiliate BCL in the election, praised Hasina for her efforts to make Bangladesh “a role model” of development in the world.

He described Hasina as mother-like, he pledged to cooperate with her government for national prosperity.

On Sunday, he told a press conference at the Madhu’s Canteen on the campus that he would join the boycott of classes and exams and sit-in outside Vice-Chancellor Md Akhtaruzzaman’s residence scheduled for Monday.

Different panels that contested in the DUCSU elections had announced the protest programmes demanding fresh polls alleging the Mar 11 elections were rigged and hit by irregularities. 

“Our message is clear – we won two posts despite votes being rigged and other irregularities taking place. Now the general students are demanding cancellation of the results and fresh polls. I am with their sensible demand,” Nur said.   

When journalists asked Nur whether he told Hasina what he thought about the Mar 11 vote, he said he did not because he felt uncomfortable and lost concentration at the Ganabhaban after seeing many BCL leaders there.

The BCL won 23 of the 25 posts in DUCSU and most of the hall union posts. Besides them, leaders of its Dhaka units also attended the Ganabhaban meeting, according to Nur.

“I felt uncomfortable when I went there. That’s why, you know, I naturally lost my concentration. I could not say many things,” he said.

“And we responded to her invitation out of courtesy. After all, the prime minister is chief executive of the state,” he added.

Speaking at the Ganabhaban on Saturday, he alleged BCL leaders had tried to brand him as a member of Islami Chhatra Shibir, the Jamaat-e-Islami’s student wing, but he had been involved with the BCL while his family with the Awami League.    

“You can’t get 100 percent in all jobs. There must be some mistakes,” he said on Saturday about the DUCSU elections. 

On Sunday, he tried to explain his comments at the Ganabhaban, “DUCSU election is an issue of Dhaka University, not the government. The winners of the election, though we are calling it rigged and hit by irregularities, were called by the prime minister. We went there out of courtesy.”

“I spoke about different issues besides DUCSU, such as the lack of housing for the students and other problems in our education system.

“I drew her attention to the issue that there had been irregularities in the DUCSU elections and the students demand a solution. I requested her to tell the authorities about it,” Nur said.   

He also urged journalists not to “present him wrongly”.

Announcing the protest programmes at the same venue earlier in the day, Liton Nandi, the VP candidate of the leftist students’ panel, criticised Nur for his comments at the Ganabhaban.

“Nur’s comments at the Ganabhaban are contradictory to his previous remarks. Their organisation expressed solidarity with us and boycotted the polls,” he said.     

Arani Semonti Khan, the VP candidate of a panel of independents, announced similar protest programmes on behalf of four panels of candidates after Nur left the Madhu’s Canteen.