Published : 02 Sep 2025, 05:59 AM
Updated : 21 Aug 2026, 01:44 PM
Dhaka University’s campus, abuzz with campaigning for the Dhaka University Central Students’ Union (DUCSU) elections, was jolted into turmoil after the High Court abruptly ordered suspension of the polls.
Candidates and students ditched their scheduled programs and rallies, instead pouring onto the streets to demand the vote be held on schedule.
The High Court stayed the election for two months after a preliminary hearing on a writ petition. Within an hour, however, the chamber court of the Appellate Division overruled that order, clearing the way for the polls, at least for now.
The reprieve calmed the campus but left students anxious about whether the election would ultimately take place.
The university authorities have scheduled the DUCSU and hall union polls for Sept 9, with 471 students contesting 28 posts. At least 10 panels and several independents have been campaigning since Aug 26. With the general election looming, the contest has also drawn wide public and media attention.
The drama began when BM Fahmida Alam, Liberation War and democratic movement secretary candidate from the left-leaning ‘Aparajeyo 71, Adommo 24’ panel, petitioned the High Court on Sunday, challenging the candidacy of Islami Chhatra Shibir’s general secretary nominee SM Farhad.
She argued that Farhad was on a Bangladesh Chhatra League committee until Aug 5, raising questions over how he could now stand as a Shibir-backed candidate.
Immediately after the HC order on Monday, DU lawyers appealed to the chamber court, which stayed the High Court order and removed the immediate legal obstacle to the polls.
Still, nearly all student organisations voiced anger over the initial suspension. Groups including Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal, Bangladesh Ganatantrik Chhatra Sangsad, Chhatra Odhikar Parishad and Islami Chhatra Shibir staged demonstrations on campus.
Ironically, even Fahmida’s own Aparajeyo 71, Adommo 24 panel’s activists took to the streets in protest. The alliance includes factions of Chhatra Union, Chhatra Front and JaSaD.
The High Court ruling broke just as the Shibir-backed panel was unveiling its manifesto outside the DUCSU building. Candidate Umama Fatema’s panel scrapped its announcement amid the uncertainty.
Speaking at a media briefing, Fahmida insisted her petition was not aimed at derailing the election. She accused Farhad of links to banned groups and said his actions -- such as displaying portraits of war collaborators at TSC -- conflicted with the DUCSU Constitution.
She alleged that since filing the case she had faced bullying from “bot accounts” online.
Farhad, in a Facebook post, congratulated Fahmida on pursuing legal means.
“Compared to edited photos and smear campaigns, your legal initiative is a better approach,” he wrote. “We will overcome obstacles and conspiracies and continue our journey. We will not stop, God willing.”
At a briefing, Aparajeyo 71, Adommo 24 AGS candidate Aditi Islam described the High Court order postponing the DUCSU election as “extraordinary and shocking”.
TURBULENT CAMPUS
Dhaka University’s campus erupted in protests after the HC order. Students and candidates from rival panels set aside campaign activities, taking to the streets demanding the vote proceed on Sept 9 as scheduled.
Vice-president candidate Bin Yamin Mollah of the Chhatra Odhikar Parishad was the first to stage a sit-in outside the vice chancellor’s residence, joined shortly by other groups with processions.
They shouted slogans: “High Court or DUCSU? DUCSU! DUCSU!”, “DUCSU is my right, no one can take it away,” and “Conspiracy won’t derail DUCSU”.
Shibir rallied from Madhur Canteen, circled Surja Sen Hall, then held a press briefing in front of the DUCSU building.
Its GS candidate Farhad said, “The election will be held on time. We know who fears the vote. On Sept 9, students will show them the red card.”
VP candidate Sadiq Kayem said, “Anyone trying to stop this election will face student resistance.”
Chhatra Dal activists marched from the central library to Aparajeyo Bangla, where VP candidate Abidul Islam Khan warned the administration, “No one can block this vote. If DUCSU is derailed despite the bloodshed this nation has endured, we will never accept it. The election must be held on the 9th of September.”
He questioned the neutrality of the university’s legal strategy, asking why “controversial” lawyer Shishir Manir had been engaged, saying: “The administration was not appointed to represent a party. Stop this charade.”
Addressing protesters near the DUCSU building, VP candidate Abdul Kader of the BAGCHAS panel said: “Students must red-card all conspiracies and keep DUCSU alive as their platform of rights. Today’s developments prove our fears -- the election is being targeted for derailment.”
GS candidate Abu Baker Mojumder added: “Voters and candidates agree -- everyone wants DUCSU.”
Another rally, led by VP candidate Umama Fatema, marched past the Arts Building toward TSC.
She told supporters, “We will not let this student election become a pawn of national politics. DUCSU must be held on Sept 9. We will press the Election Commission directly to ensure there is no delay.”
She questioned the timing of the writ petition, “Voter lists closed on Aug 11, withdrawals on Aug 25. Why file the writ petition only now, days before the vote? This is a ploy to delegitimise the entire election.”
Later in the evening, Fahmida’s ‘Aparajeyo 71, Adommo 24’ panel -- whose writ triggered the suspension -- held a press conference at Madhur Canteen.
AGS candidate Aditi said, “Fahmida filed this petition from a sound moral position, targeting Farhad’s anti-Liberation stance. The petition never sought to suspend the election itself.”
