Historic CUCSU election after 35 years

For the first time in 35 years, students at the University of Chittagong (CU) are going to cast their votes today, Tuesday, in the long-awaited Chittagong University Central Students’ Union (CUCSU) and hall council elections. The last such election was held in 1990.

In the absence of elections, the campus remained under the influence of ruling-party-backed or dominant student groups, who often prioritised control and conflict over student welfare.

Dormitory seats were distributed based on allegiance rather than need, while students continued to suffer from housing shortages, poor food quality, and inadequate transport services.

Many were also forced to join rallies and processions and, in some cases, faced violence and intimidation.

Following the July Uprising last year and the subsequent fall of the Awami League government, public universities have gradually begun holding long-stalled student union elections.

Dhaka University and Jahangirnagar University have already completed theirs, where panels backed by Islami Chhatra Shibir won a majority of posts. The Rajshahi University Students’ Union election is scheduled for tomorrow, Thursday.

Located about 22 kilometres from Chattogram city, the University of Chittagong began operations in 1966, the same year CUCSU was established.

The union was meant to develop leadership qualities, strengthen cultural activities, and safeguard student rights, but irregular elections halted that vision.

Since its inception, only six CUCSU elections have been held—in 1970, 1972, 1974, 1979, 1981, and 1990. In the first election, Md Ibrahim and Md Abdur Rob of the Chhatra League were elected vice-president (VP) and general secretary (GS).

The 1972 election saw Shamsuzzaman Hira, president of then Bangladesh Chhatra Union, elected vice-president (VP) and Mahmudur Rahman Manna of Chhatra League as general secretary (GS). In 1974, SM Fazlul Haque and Golam Jilani Chowdhury—both from JASAD Chhatra League—won the top posts.

The fourth CUCSU election in 1979 was won by Mazharul Haque Shah Chowdhury (JASAD Chhatra League) and Jamir Chowdhury (Chhatra League), while in 1981, Jasim Uddin Sarkar and Abdul Gaffar from Islami Chhatra Shibir were elected.

The last election, on 8 February 1990, saw Md Nazim Uddin (Jatiya Chhatra League) elected VP and Azim Uddin Ahmed (Samajtantrik Chhatra Front) as GS under the banner of the “All-Party Students’ Unity”.

In the 1972 election, Chhatra Union dominated by winning 24 of 27 posts. “That committee organised numerous cultural and sporting events, from debates to drama festivals,” recalled Shamsuzzaman Hira, now a member of the Communist Party of Bangladesh (CPB).

He attributed the 35-year gap to political interference. “After 1990, successive governments didn’t want student union elections. They preferred the dominance of their own student organisations on campus.”

Former VP and BNP chairperson’s adviser SM Fazlul Haque said, “If elections had been held annually, students could have been involved in cultural, sporting, and creative activities instead of political domination.”

With CUCSU’s inactivity, student politics gradually became a tool of ruling-party dominance. In the 1980s, Islami Chhatra Shibir began asserting control, which lasted until around 2014. Over the past decade, Bangladesh Chhatra League—now banned—dominated the campus, divided into two main factions and 11 sub-factions, often clashing violently.

Between 1997 and 2016, at least 15 students were killed in factional fights over extortion, influence, and internal disputes. The last fatal clash occurred on 14 December 2014, when Tapas Sarkar, a student of the Department of Sanskrit, was shot dead during a Chhatra League infighting. Only one of these murder cases has seen a verdict, according to police.

This year’s election involves 27,516 registered voters, including 11,156 female students. As many as 908 candidates have been contesting the election. For the 26 central positions, 415 candidates are contesting, while 493 candidates are vying for 210 posts across 14 halls and one hostel.

In the central body, 24 candidates are competing for VP, 22 for GS, and 22 for AGS (assistant general secretary).

Thirteen panels are contesting, including the BNP-backed Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal panel, Islami Chhatra Shibir-backed “Sampriti Shikkharthi Jote”, “Boichittrer Oikko” (an alliance of 10 leftist and cultural organisations), “Droho Parishad” (a combined panel of Chhatra Union and Samajtantrik Chhatra Front), and “Binirman Shikkharthi Oikko”, an alliance of the Students’ Alliance for Democracy and Bangladesh Students Federation, both linked to last year’s July Movement.