All academic and administrative activities, including classes and exams, resumed on Sunday after the two-week vacation at Rajshahi University has come to an end.
On the first day, despite unfavourable weather, the campus was once again abuzz with campaigning for the Rajshahi University Central Students’ Union (RUCSU) election.
There was a noticeable presence of students on campus since morning. In between classes, they gathered in groups to chat and socialise. All mobile shops on campus reopened. Candidates from various panels contesting the RUCSU election were seen going door to door among students, actively campaigning.
At 10:30am, Nafiu lslam, the General Secretary (GS) candidate from the Chhatra Dal-supported panel, was distributing leaflets to students near the Amtola area of the university transport market.
He said, "After a long period of inactivity, students have started returning to campus. There's a different kind of joy and excitement among them. I hope that on 16 October, we’ll have a fair, peaceful, and participatory election."
Throughout the day, candidates from various panels were seen campaigning at different locations on campus. Mehedi Maruf, the Vice President (VP) candidate from the 'RUCSU for Radical Change' panel and former coordinator of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement, was spotted campaigning in the Tukitaki square.
He said, "The campus is becoming festive once again. I’ve been campaigning since morning, and students are responding positively. However, many students still have doubts about whether the RUCSU election will take place on time."
Shamsad Jahan, the Women’s Affairs candidate from the ‘Universal Student Union’ panel, said she wants to revive the electoral atmosphere that existed on campus before the vacation. “We want to bring back the spirit of the earlier election campaign,” she said. “But it must be inclusive and participatory.”
A student named Siyam Ahmed said, “What we want is for the campus environment to remain positive. Whoever is elected in the RUCSU election should work to uphold our rights and stand by us during our problems.”
The RUCSU election was initially scheduled for 25 September. However, protests over the reinstatement of the ward quota system and subsequent clashes between students and university faculty and staff changed the situation. As a result, the Jatiyatabadi Shikkhok Forum and university officials and employees went on strike, bringing normal campus activities to a halt.
Considering the situation, the election commission decided to postpone the election to 16 October. Following that, university staff called off their strike after setting a seven-day deadline, and the teachers suspended their work stoppage upon receiving assurances that their demands would be addressed. In the meantime, the Durga Puja holidays began.
New campaign schedule announced
A new campaign schedule has been set for candidates contesting the RUCSU, hall union, and Senate student representative elections. Candidates will be allowed to campaign until midnight (12:00 AM) on 14 October. This information was announced in a notice signed by Chief Election Commissioner F Nazrul Islam on Saturday night.
Regarding this, RUCSU treasurer and Chief Returning Officer Setaur Rahman told Prothom Alo that previously, candidates were allowed to campaign daily from 10:00am to 10:00pm. Under the new schedule, campaigning is permitted from 8:00am to 10:00pm each day. However, on the final day, candidates will be allowed to campaign until midnight.