Hugely-anticipated DUCSU election set to take place Tuesday
The long-awaited Dhaka University Central Students’ Union (DUCSU) election will be held tomorrow Tuesday, six years after the last, that itself was held after a gap of 28 years. Branded as the “second parliament” of Bangladesh, the DUCSU election is returning amid much anticipation and speculation.
Over the past 13 days, candidates ran vibrant campaigns in a festive atmosphere, employing creative methods to win over voters. Most students have also finalized their choices for the 41 positions at stake—28 in DUCSU and 13 in each of the 18 hall unions (students vote for the hall they belong to).
Ballots and Candidates
According to the schedule, voting will take place from 8am to 4pm. A total of 471 candidates are contesting the 28 DUCSU positions, while 1,035 students are vying for 234 hall union posts.
This year’s ballots will be larger than before—five pages for DUCSU and a single page for hall unions. Voting will be conducted through Optical Mark Recognition (OMR) sheets, with each voter allotted eight minutes to cast their ballot.
Polling Centers
The election will be conducted across eight centers on campus, with 810 polling booths set up:
1. Curzon Hall Center: Dr. Muhammad Shahidullah Hall, Amar Ekushey Hall, Fazlul Huq Muslim Hall (5,077 votes).
2. Physical Education Center: Jagannath Hall, Shaheed Sergeant Zahurul Haque Hall, Salimullah Muslim Hall (4,853 votes).
3. TSC Center: Rokeya Hall (5,665 votes).
4. DU Club Center: Bangladesh-Kuwait Maitree Hall, Bangamata Sheikh Fazilatunnesa Mujib Hall (4,755 votes).
5. Senate Building Center: Sir AF Rahman Hall, Haji Muhammad Mohsin Hall, Bijoy Ekattor Hall (4,830 votes).
6. Udayan School & College: Surja Sen Hall, Muktijoddha Ziaur Rahman Hall, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Hall, Poet Jasim Uddin Hall (6,155 votes).
7. Geology Department Center: Poet Sufia Kamal Hall (4,443 votes).
8. ULAB School & College: Shamsun Nahar Hall (4,096 votes).
Shuttle Bus Service
To ensure smooth voting, Dhaka University authorities will operate special shuttle bus services from 7:45 am to 3:50 pm on polling day. The circular route will cover the Geology Department, Curzon Hall, Shahbagh, TSC, Udayan School, DU Teachers’ Club, ULAB School, Senate Building, and Physical Education Center before returning to the Geology Department.
Voting Process
Voters can cast their ballots at their designated centers at a convenient time. Identity verification will be mandatory:
First-year students must show library cards or pay-in slips.
Other students may use DU ID cards, hall cards, or library cards.
Once verified, polling officials will mark voters’ fingers with indelible ink, and they must sign the voter list before receiving a ballot. Voters will then enter secret booths—without mobile phones or electronic devices—mark their chosen candidates with a cross (X) inside the designated box, and place the ballot into separate boxes for DUCSU and hall elections. Ballots must not be folded.
For the first time, 30 visually impaired students will vote through the Braille method. Returning Officer and Associate Professor Sharmin Kabir of the Institute of Education and Research will oversee the process.
Transparency in Counting
To ensure transparency, the university authority announced that vote counting will be broadcast live on LED screens outside polling centers.
Voters and Contestants
The final voter list includes 39,775 students—20,873 male and 18,902 female.
For DUCSU:
Vice-President (VP): 45 candidates
General Secretary (GS): 19 candidates
Assistant General Secretary (AGS): 25 candidates
Liberation War and Democratic Movement Secretary: 17 candidates
Common Room, Reading Room, and Cafeteria Secretary: 11 candidates
International Affairs Secretary: 14 candidates
Literary and Cultural Secretary: 19 candidates
Science and Technology Secretary: 12 candidates
Research and Publication Secretary: 9 candidates
Sports Secretary: 13 candidates
Student Transport Secretary: 12 candidates
Social Welfare Secretary: 17 candidates
Health and Environment Secretary: 15 candidates
Human Rights and Legal Affairs Secretary: 11 candidates
Career Development Secretary: 15 candidates
Members (13 posts): 217 candidates
For hall unions, 1,035 candidates are competing for 234 positions.
Background
The last DUCSU election was held on March 11, 2019, after a 28-year hiatus. In that election, Nurul Haque Nur was elected VP, Golam Rabbani GS, and Saddam Hossain AGS.
Unlike 2019, when there were 25 DUCSU posts, this year’s polls include 28 positions, with the addition of four new posts—Research and Publication Secretary, Career Development Secretary, Health and Environment Secretary, and Human Rights and Legal Affairs Secretary—following demands from student bodies.