The Election Commission for Jagannath University student union elections announced the results from 29 polling centres with candidates from Islami Chhatra Shibir supported ‘Adomya Jobian Oikya’ panel taking the lead in key posts.
The results announced so far show that Islami Chhatra Shibir-backed candidates led in the vice-president, general secretary and assistant general secretary posts.
Earlier, after the counting of votes from 20 centres, AKM Rakib, the VP candidate backed by Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal, was leading the race, while the situation shifted as results from additional centres were declared.
The latest results, including those from the history department, were announced around 8:30pm on Wednesday.
Results from 10 polling centres are still pending.
According to the results from the 29 centres counted so far, Shibir-backed VP candidate Riazul Islam has secured 3,739 votes, while his closest rival, AKM Rakib of Chhatra Dal, has received 3,393 votes, leaving a margin of 346 votes.
In the general secretary post, Abdul Alim Arif of the Shibir-supported panel is leading with 3,854 votes, significantly ahead of Chhatra Dal-backed candidate Khadijatul Kubra, who has obtained 1,478 votes.
For the post of assistant general secretary, Shibir-backed candidate Masud Rana is ahead with 3,334 votes, while his nearest competitor, Atikur Rahman Tanjil from the Chhatra Dal panel, has received 2,844 votes—a difference of 490 votes.
While the Shibir-supported panel is leading in the top three positions as well as most secretary posts, Chhatra Dal candidates are still ahead in the library secretary and cultural secretary positions. Several Chhatra Dal-backed candidates are also performing well in the executive member races.
Speaking during the counting process, assistant election commissioner Shahidul Islam said that the vote counting was likely to continue late into the night.
‘We are conducting the counting with utmost caution and transparency. The results will be announced immediately after the process is completed,’ he said.
Technical glitches were reported during the vote-counting of the JnUCSU election.
As a result, counting was carried out using both manual and machine methods, but officials were initially unable to complete the process. Counting resumed around 12:45am on Tuesday after a four-hour pause.
The first-ever JnUCSU election has generated widespread enthusiasm among students and teachers alike.
The university administration had taken extensive measures to ensure that the election was conducted in a peaceful, orderly and credible manner.
According to officials of the Jagannath University Central Students’ Union and hall union elections, voter turnout stood at 65.33 per cent, while participation in the hall union polls was about 77 per cent.
The university’s election commission data shows that the total number of voters stands at 16,637.
Candidates are contesting under four main panels, including Chhatra Dal-Chhatra Adhikar Parishad-general students combined panel ‘Oikyabaddha Nirbhik Jobian’; Islami Chhatra Shibir-backed ‘Adomya Jobian Oiky’; the left alliance-backed ‘Maulana Bhashani Brigade’; and Jatiya Chhatra Shakti-backed panel ‘Oikyabaddha Jobian’.
Voting was conducted at 178 booths in 39 centres on the campus.
According to the election commission, a total of 190 candidates contested for 34 posts.
Among them, 157 candidates contested for 21 posts of the central students’ union and 33 candidates vied for 13 posts of the university’s only female hall union.
Although the election was initially scheduled for December 30, it was postponed in the morning of the day following the death of former prime minister and Bangladesh Nationalist Party chairperson Khaleda Zia on the day.
