After its debacle in the Dhaka University Central Students’ Union (Ducsu), the Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal (JCD) has suffered another blow at Jahangirnagar University, as Islami Chhatra Shibir makes significant political inroads on two of the country’s major university campuses.
As Chhatra Dal boycotted the elections to the Jahangirnagar University Central Students’ Union (Jucsu), raising allegations of irregularities and vote-rigging, former Jucsu and Chhatra Dal leaders attributed Shibir’s rise at the university to its “covert” political strategies and tactics of “infiltration.”
According to them, for the past three decades, Shibir – which was “banned” on the JU campus – had secretly carried out political activities by infiltrating Chhatra League – now banned – Chhatra Dal, leftist, and professional organisations.
During this time, Shibir activists blended in with general students so seamlessly that they became indistinguishable. They further claim that supporters of Jamaat-e-Islami – the patron of Shibir – had also been “secretly” active within the JU administration.
Former Jucsu leaders further noted that Chhatra Dal failed to compete with Shibir due to messy leadership, internal conflicts, and numerous allegations against the organisation.
“Chhatra Shibir infiltrated Chhatra League to sustain its covert political activities, systematically prepared for the future, and even positioned its people within the administration,” former Jucsu vice-president Ashraf Uddin Khan told TIMES of Bangladesh.
He further said that Chhatra Dal had been disorganised on the campus, with no committee in place for many years. Later, a committee was formed with senior members, but it did not yield good results.
The former JCD leader also believes that widespread allegations of extortion, violence, and illegal occupation against the BNP and Chhatra Dal influenced the election outcome.
The Jucsu election was held on Thursday across 21 halls, with five panels, including Chhatra Dal, boycotting it, citing irregularities and vote-rigging.
Shibir at JU: From ‘banned’ to comeback
In 1989, 22 student organisations collectively declared Shibir “banned” on the JU campus following the murder of a JCD activist, allegedly by Shibir cadres during a clash.
Although the university authorities never officially enforced the ban, Shibir’s presence on campus was effectively restricted due to broad opposition from political and cultural groups.
In Thursday’s Jucsu election, held after a hiatus of 33 years, Shibir staged a remarkable comeback.
Nazmul Hasan Abhi, former general secretary of the JU unit of Chhatra Dal, said despite being banned for many years, Shibir had secretly infiltrated various campus organisations and systematically built its network.
“With the cooperation of the JU administration and the election commission, they orchestrated a rigged Jucsu election. They fielded multiple proxy panels, and in the female student halls, Shibir supporters reportedly cast four to five votes each,” he alleged.
However, JU Shibir leaders claim that Chhatra Dal boycotted the election and raised allegations of irregularities because they realised defeat was inevitable.
Arif Ullah Adib, vice-presidential candidate of the Shibir-backed Somonnito Chhatra Jot panel, said, “Chhatra Dal did not follow proper election procedures. Their style of campaigning and activities was poorly received by general students. Realising this, they ultimately chose to boycott the election at the last moment.”
Mohammad Mazharul Islam, general secretary candidate of the Shibir-backed panel, added, “Chhatra Dal has every right to boycott the election. However, it seems they chose to do so because they considered boycotting preferable to facing certain defeat.”
JCD’s internal conflicts
On 6 January this year, the 177-member convening committee of the JCD JU unit came under scrutiny, eight years after its formation. The committee was later expanded to 521 members.
Questions were raised over the leadership of joint conveners Kaushik Sarkar of the 43rd batch and Selim Ahmed of the 40th batch.
The issue became public on 17 August when central Chhatra Dal General Secretary Nasir Uddin attempted to form hall committees on the JU campus.
In response to allegations against leaders and activists of the JU committee and the newly formed hall committees, the central Chhatra Dal established a three-member inquiry committee on the night of 17 August. Three days later, the committee submitted its report to the central office.
Ahead of the JUCSU polls, in a Skype address on 27 August, BNP acting chairman Tarique Rahman urged party activists to view the election as a rehearsal for the upcoming national polls, instructing them to set aside conflicts and work together.
However, the election outcome indicates that internal divisions persist within JU’s Chhatra Dal.
Denying allegations of internal conflict, JU JCD convenor Zahir Uddin Muhammad Babar claimed that the JUCSU election was rigged and a farce. He alleged that the party’s clean leadership had been deliberately sidelined with the assistance of the administration and the election commission.
