The Supreme Court chamber judge today (Sept 1) halted a High Court order that had stayed the Dhaka University Central Students' Union (DUCSU) election until October 30.
Justice Farah Mahbub issued the order until Dhaka University files a civil miscellaneous petition (CMP) seeking a stay of the High Court directive.
University lawyer Shishir Monir told reporters that after the High Court had earlier stayed the election process through a writ petition, he immediately moved a handwritten petition before the Chamber Judge, who then halted the order until the CMP is formally filed and heard.
“This means there is no legal bar to conducting the DUCSU election at this moment. Campaigning can continue. We will file the CMP tomorrow morning and expect a hearing shortly thereafter,” Monir said.
Earlier, a bench comprising Justice Habibul Gani and Justice Sheikh Tahsin Ali had stayed the election process until 30 October while issuing a rule following a primary hearing on the writ.
Following that decision, Monir said that preparations for the election were already at an advanced stage.
“The final list of candidates was announced on 26 August. Five days have passed since then. If the election process is halted at this stage, the university authorities believe it could spark reactions among students. That is why we immediately decided to seek suspension of the order at the Chamber Court,” he explained.
He added that the issue had been treated as one of national importance and that the university had instructed its lawyers to proceed without delay.
The writ petition had been filed by BM Fahmida Alam, a candidate backed by the leftist alliance for the post of secretary for liberation war and democratic movement affairs.
She challenged the candidacy of SM Forhad, the general secretary candidate from the Jamaat-e-Islami-backed student alliance, questioning how he could contest from that panel despite allegedly having held a position in the ruling Awami League’s student wing prior to 5 August 2024.
The DUCSU election is scheduled for 9 September. The Jamaat-backed panel is fielding Sadiq Kayem for vice-president and SM Forhad for general secretary.
According to the final list announced on 26 August, a total of 471 candidates will contest across 28 positions. Of them, 45 are vying for the vice-president post, 19 for general secretary, and 25 for assistant general secretary. The majority, 217 candidates, will compete for member posts.
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