'Ma'am might still be alive if votes were machine-counted’: JUCSU candidate after teacher's death

Independent VP hopeful Jitu laments the reliance on manual ballot counting in the election

The death of teacher Jannatul Ferdous during the counting of ballots in the Jahangirnagar University Central Students’ Union (JUCSU) election has sparked criticism from students, with one candidate suggesting that she might have survived had votes been tabulated by machines instead of by hand.

On Friday morning, Jannatul, an assistant professor of fine arts, had joined the counting process at the JUCSU Senate Building. She suddenly collapsed and was rushed to Enam Medical College Hospital, where doctors declared her dead.

Her funeral prayers were held at 2pm at the university’s central playground. Before the prayers, students thronged the grounds to catch a final glimpse of the teacher. Candidates for various JUCSU posts were also present.

Speaking before the service, Abdur Rashid Jitu, running for JUCSU vice-president as an independent, said:

“Even in this age of technology, if we continue to rely on manual methods, it creates complications for us. We saw how difficult it was to manually count votes after so many ballots had been cast in the election.”

“If the votes had been counted by machine, we believe there would have been no questions about transparency. And perhaps Ma'am’s life would not have been lost. Various incidents are taking place during the JUCSU polls. Among them, the death of a teacher during the counting process is deeply tragic.”

Earlier, on Thursday, Jitu had accused the BNP-backed Chhatra Dal and Jamaat-e-Islami-backed Islami Chhatra Shibir panels of violating the electoral code of conduct.

Speaking to reporters while visiting Maulana Bhasani Hall, he had said: “I saw members of Islami Chhatra Shibir distributing leaflets for their candidates in many halls. This is a clear violation of the electoral code of conduct.

“In addition, in a room at Rabindranath Tagore Hall, a central vice-president of the Chhatra Dal was present. He was escorted out by the hall provost and journalists.”

Jitu also alleged that in several halls, voters’ fingers were not marked with ink during balloting.