Dhaka University student union poll and political stability in Bangladesh

New Delhi, Sep 9 (IANS) Since its independence in 1971, Bangladesh has experienced several ups and downs in politics and governance. Sometimes the country’s youth, especially students, have played a dominant role in the change, while at other times our eastern neighbour has been a victim of political manoeuvrings.

As a reminder of the vicissitudes of time, reports have noted that polls for the Dhaka University Central Students Union (DUCSU) and hall unions were held on Tuesday, September 9, after a six-year gap.

And, as a Dhaka Tribune report had pointed out on February 11, 2019, DUCSU and hall union elections were held that year after a 28-year hiatus.

According to the 2019 report, DUCSU elections were held on June 6, 1990, when General H.M. Ershad was president, and the student body played a significant role in ousting the dictator.

Writing about this year’s student body polls, the Daily Star said in August, “While student union elections are scheduled next month at Dhaka University, Jahangirnagar University, and Rajshahi University, many other public universities remain uncertain about whether polls will ever be held, either due to legal bars or administrative delays.”

Critics of the former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina have often alleged her hand in exerting pressure on the Opposition, or keeping them out of the poll process.

Thus, the revival of DUCSU elections marked the first opportunity in recent times for students to choose their own representatives.

However, the interim government’s ban on the Hasina-led Awami League and designating its student wing as a terror outfit has shifted campus power balances.

Going by the Dhaka Tribune report, the earlier regimes too had kept student bodies from holding regular elections.

According to the Daily Star, “Of 56 public universities across the country, only seven have the legal provision for a central students' union.”

Among those without legal provisions, the report said that Jagannath University has “taken a step forward” as its syndicate last month approved the long-awaited constitution for the central students' union.

Others, it added, like Begum Rokeya University, Islamic University, Comilla University, and Maulana Bhashani Science and Technology University, lack provisions for unions.

At Rangpur's Begum Rokeya University, students launched a hunger strike on Aug 17, where nine fell sick within three days, and several had to be hospitalised, claimed the newspaper.

As the country tries to find a new footing after the July 2024 student-led revolution ousted the Hsina government, the current student union elections may usher in a new hope for political stability.

Because, despite several pledges by the interim government in Dhaka, general elections still look way off.

--IANS

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