Chittagong: A total of 1,063 candidates have collected nomination forms, and 19 have submitted their nomination papers as of Tuesday to contest the elections of Chittagong University Central Students' Union (CUCSU) and Hall Sangsad.
According to Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, the original deadline for issuing nomination papers was yesterday as per the earlier schedule announced by the CUCSU Election Commission. Following an application from the CU unit of Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal (JCD) to extend the deadline by two days, the election commission has extended the time for one day for both collecting and submitting the nomination papers. Abdullah Al Noman, General Secretary of JCD CU unit, told reporters that they had requested the extension following requests from a significant number of students, particularly those injured in a recent clash with villagers.
In their application, JCD also argued that many students could not meet the deadline for collecting and submitting nomination papers due to ongoing final exams in various departments. The distribution of nomination papers for the CUCSU and Hall Sangsad elections began last Sunday, with a total of 1,063 intending candidates collecting nomination papers in three days. Among them, 474 candidates have taken nomination forms for the central union, while 589 have collected forms for the Hall Sangsads.
A total of 15 Hall Sangsad elections will be held at CU. The number of nomination papers collected in each hall is as follows: 42 in AF Rahman Hall, 38 in Alaol Hall, 44 in Shah Amanat Hall, 39 in Bijoy-24 Hall, 47 in Atish Dipankar Hall, 57 in Farhad Hall, 37 in Khaleda Zia Hall, 38 in Masterda Surya Sen Hall, 14 in Nawab Faizunnesa Hall, 33 in Pritilata Hall, 37 in Rab Hall, 25 in Rashid Hall, 25 in Nahar Hall, 41 in Shahjalal Hall, and 72 in Suhrawardy Hall.
The schedule for the elections was announced on August 28. The scrutiny of nomination papers will begin on September 18, with the primary list of candidates to be published on September 21. The deadline for withdrawal of candidature is 3.30 pm on September 23. The final list of candidates will be published on September 25, and voting will take place from 9 am to 4 pm on October 12.