Jagannath University students' union election rescheduled on Jan 6

The decision comes at the Syndicate’s second emergency meeting following Khaleda Zia’s death

The Jagannath University Central Students’ Union (JnUCSU) and hall council elections, postponed following the death of Khaleda Zia, will be held on Jan 6.

The decision came at an urgent meeting, said JnU Syndicate member Professor Mohammad Bilal Hossain.

Earlier in the morning, the university had decided to postpone the long-awaited JnUCSU and hall union elections following the death of BNP Chairperson Khaleda.

Voting for the university’s first-ever central students’ union election had been scheduled to take place between 8:30am and 3pm on Tuesday. Khaleda died earlier in the morning around 6am while undergoing treatment at Evercare Hospital in Dhaka.

Jagannath University was upgraded from a college to a full-fledged university in 2005. However, the Jagannath University Act of that year did not include provisions for a students’ union, meaning no JnUCSU election had been held since the institution’s establishment.

Students have repeatedly demanded the restoration of the student union over the years, but the elections were delayed due to what the authorities cited as legal complications.

Following sustained student protests, regulations governing the JnUCSU were finalised on Oct 28.

After several delays, the election schedule was announced on Dec 5. Polling was initially set for Dec 22 but was later pushed back to Dec 30 after the campus was closed due to an earthquake.