Boycotting DUCSU, Umama Fatema says Shibir's 'betrayal will be etched in history'

“This rigged election will be etched in Bangladesh's history as a black night," she wrote on Facebook

Independent vice-president candidate Umama Fatema has rejected the results of the Dhaka University Central Students’ Union (DUCSU) election and launched a scathing attack on the Islami Chhatra Shibir, accusing the group of “betraying the nation” through large-scale rigging.

In a Facebook post around 5:45am on Wednesday, after polls closed and counting stretched into the night, Umama -- a leading figure in 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 -- resorted to “novel ways of manipulation” to engineer its stunning sweep of the polls.

“For their petty interests, Islami Chhatra Shibir has betrayed the nation in a way that will be remembered in history,” she wrote.

Earlier, at around 3:30am, Umama had already announced a boycott of the polls, posting: “Boycott! Boycott! I boycott the DUCSU. A completely shameless, rigged election.”

“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 before Umama.

Chhatra Dal also protested against the election authority for an alleged instance in which “pre-filled” ballots in favour of the Chhatra Shibir-backed panel were found.

There were also reports of Chhatra Dal protests in front of the Dhaka University Club over the alleged stuffing of ballots overnight.

Shibir’s Abu Shadik Kayem romped to victory in the DUCSU vice-president race, bagging more than 14,000 votes, while his panel colleague SM Farhad bagged the general secretary post. They won by margins more than double those of their nearest rivals in most halls.

Rejecting the allegations of rigging, VP-elect Shadik told reporters after the count that the election had been held in a festive and peaceful atmosphere. “Some are trying to sabotage the election,” he said, urging the administration to act against those attempting to derail the process.