The University Teachers’ Network has demanded exemplary punishment for the student who threatened to gang-rape a female student that filed a petition with the High Court regarding the upcoming Dhaka University Central Students’ Union (DUCSU) election.
At a press conference held at Madhur Canteen on Tuesday around 11:30 AM, members of the platform expressed grave concern over the incident and announced 13 specific demands to ensure a fair and secure election.
In their written statement, DU teachers Tahmina Akhter and Mosahida Sultana said, “It has come to light that a Sociology student, Ali Hossain, issued a gang-rape threat against a female DUCSU candidate through a Facebook post. He must face exemplary punishment under due process, so that such incidents are never repeated.”
The teachers further noted that vague rules and the lack of clear penalties have allowed repeated violations of the electoral code of conduct, with the authorities failing to take adequate action even after being informed.
Among the 13 demands raised by the University Teachers’ Network were:
- Ensuring a sufficient number of polling booths proportionate to the number of voters.
- Extending the voting period until 5 PM.
- Making the vote-counting process transparent through inclusive consultation with all parties.
- Adopting and implementing election-related decisions in a non-discriminatory and transparent manner.
- Ensuring fairness in assigning teachers, officers, and staff duties.
- Taking steps to curb cyber-bullying, particularly obscene and derogatory attacks against students and teachers on Facebook pages and groups.
- Increasing the number of buses and trips to ensure safe access to campus for non-residential students.
- Enforcing a code of conduct for journalists and social media content gatherers during election coverage.
- Referring all sexual harassment cases directly to the university’s anti-sexual harassment cell.
The teachers emphasized that the incident of issuing a gang-rape threat reflects the toxic environment surrounding the election and that immediate action is required to uphold the dignity and security of female students.
