As the DUCSU election campaign intensifies, Rokeya Hall student Anika Tahsina, a law student with an active record in student movements and international human rights advocacy, has formally announced her candidacy for the post of Human Rights and Law Secretary in the central students’ union.
In a detailed post on her social media, Anika recalled her role in the July Uprising, when students broke the locks of Rokeya Hall and drove out Chhatra League from campus, briefly experiencing a campus free from authoritarian control. She described the uprising as the moment that gave her “a new dream” — a vision of a campus where women can raise their voices freely, without fear of repression, both online and offline.
“I want a DUCSU that stands beside any student who faces harassment. I want a campus where questioning authority is a right, where the administration remains accountable to students, where transparency in budget allocation for research and education is ensured,” Anika wrote. She emphasized her commitment to women’s empowerment, saying femininity should be seen not as a vulnerability but as strength and security.
Her profile reflects both activism and academic recognition. In 2024, she represented Bangladesh as a full-funded delegate at the UN Human Rights Council, where she spoke about enforced disappearances, extrajudicial killings, and the July massacre. The same year, her team became national champions in an international humanitarian law moot competition and represented Bangladesh in Hong Kong.
Anika also drew attention for a symbolic act of protest — rejecting the U.S. State Department’s International Women of Courage Award in 2024, citing Washington’s complicity in legitimizing Israel’s ongoing assault on Gaza. “For me, humanity, justice, and the ethics of resistance are the highest honors,” she declared.
Framing her campaign as a continuation of her activism, Anika pledged to take the struggles of Dhaka University students “beyond the boundaries of the campus to the global stage,” and to dedicate herself to ensuring rights and justice if elected.
Her candidacy adds a fresh dimension to the DUCSU race, which has so far been dominated by mainstream student blocs and heavyweight contenders. For many observers, Anika represents the underdog voice of principled student activism — one that seeks to transform hard-earned credibility in human rights into institutional reform within DUCSU.
