JCD-backed panel boycotts Jucsu polls

The Jatiyatabadi
Chhatra Dal (JCD)-backed panel has boycotted today's Jahangirnagar Central
Students' Union (Jucsu) election, alleging widespread irregularities, vote rigging and bias by the university
administration.
Tanjila Hossain Baisakhi, general secretary (GS) candidate from the panel,
announced the decision at an emergency press conference held on the university
campus at 3:30pm today.
"From the very beginning we feared
this election would be staged," she said. "Ballot papers and OMR
machines supplied by a Jamaat-linked businessman were used in the election. We
repeatedly warned the administration that this would prevent a fair election,
but they ignored our demands."
Baisakhi
alleged irregularities in voting across several halls, including fake ballots,
forged votes, obstruction of polling agents, and special privileges for
Shibir-backed candidates.
In some halls, she claimed, indelible ink on voters' fingers disappeared after
casting ballots, while in others voter lists lacked photographs, delaying
polling.
She
also alleged that at Shaheed Tajuddin Ahmad Hall the JCD-backed vice president
candidate was barred entry and mistreated, while at Jahanara Imam Hall an
independent candidate was attacked.
According
to her, Shibir-backed candidate Meghla entered restricted areas using a
journalist's identity card, yet the authorities failed to intervene.
"The administration has clearly lost its neutrality," she said.
During
the briefing, Baisakhi added that ballot papers were found scattered on the
floors of several halls.
She
further claimed that Shibir agents were allowed inside polling centres as early
as 8:00am, before official voting began, while JCD-backed agents were blocked.
"This
election does not reflect the true verdict of the students," Baisakhi
said.
"The
university administration has joined hands with Jamaat-Shibir to engineer the
election. We are left with no choice but to boycott it."
















