No concerns over RUCSU, CUCSU polls: Home Adviser

Home Affairs Adviser Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Md Jahangir Alam Chowdhury has said there is no concern over the upcoming RUCSU and CUCSU elections, expressing confidence that both polls will be held peacefully and in an orderly manner.

He made the remarks while speaking to journalists on Thursday following a meeting on preparations and law and order for Rajshahi University Central Students’ Union (RUCSU) and Chittagong University Central Students’ Union (CUCSU) elections, scheduled for 2025.

The adviser noted that following the successful completion of Dhaka University (DUCSU) and Jahangirnagar University (JUCSU) elections, RUCSU and CUCSU elections are next in line.

“Today we discussed election matters with them. These are representatives of the country’s most educated segment and the voters themselves are highly educated,” he said. “We shared experiences to ensure a fair election process. Since the national election is also due in February, the lessons learned here will be helpful for that as well.”

When asked if any law and order concerns were raised during the meeting, the adviser clarified that no such concerns were mentioned by the stakeholders.

Regarding recommendations made by university representatives, he said they provided input on various technical aspects such as the number of polling centres, vote counting procedures, use of ink, ensuring voter ID cards with photos and maintaining a transparent voter list. Discussions were also held on how to announce results more quickly.

Referring to the three-day delay in publishing JUCSU election results, the adviser explained that both manual and machine-based counting methods were used.

“They have suggested relying more on machine counting in future, as it speeds up the process,” he added.

On the national election, Jahangir Alam Chowdhury said, “We are sharing experiences with them. Not all of those experiences can be disclosed, but we are learning important lessons from this process.”

When asked again about the law and order situation surrounding the student union elections, the adviser reaffirmed, “There is no concern over RUCSU or CUCSU elections. We expect both to be conducted smoothly. For that, we will need your support and cooperation.”