The Bangladesh Islami Chhatra Shibir-led Dhaka University Central Students' Union (Ducsu) has yet to fulfil several key promises made during its election campaign, including improving hall accommodation and food quality and making the campus more women-friendly.
Months after taking office, dormitories remain overcrowded, food quality complaints persist, and several promised initiatives—including nutritionist-led food quality checks, meal vouchers and a stronger mechanism to address sexual harassment—have yet to materialize.
Ducsu leaders reject allegations of inaction, saying many initiatives have stalled due to a lack of cooperation from the university administration.
Ducsu General Secretary (GS) SM Farhad said: "Ducsu had fully prepared plans and documentation for several projects, including canteen improvements, a card-punch security system for women's halls, and nutritionist-led food quality checks. However, the administration withheld permissions, funding, or basic engagement needed to implement those initiatives."
He added: "Once Ducsu's term is over, we intend to publicly present what we managed to accomplish and what was blocked by politics."
Accommodation shortage persists
Accommodation remains one of Ducsu's most visible unmet promises.
Several residential halls continue to operate beyond capacity. At Bijoy Ekattor Hall, rooms built for four students now house as many as eight, placing additional pressure on dining facilities, bathrooms, water supply and electricity. Nearly every residential hall is reportedly overcrowded.
The Bangladesh Islami Chhatra Shibir-backed panel's manifesto pledged hall accommodation for every first-year student, alongside interim measures such as temporary hostels or monthly housing allowances until long-term housing projects were completed. However, students and university officials say Ducsu has only a limited role in allocating hall seats and little influence over living conditions.
Responding to protests over hall seat allocation in April, former Proctor Saifuddin Ahmed said the university followed its standard allocation procedure without intentional delay. He added that seats were allocated earlier than in previous years, disputing Ducsu's claim of credit.
Farhad, however, told Dhaka Tribune that Ducsu's primary achievement was pushing the previous administration to secure approval for a Tk2,841 crore government housing project, which he said would address nearly 80% of the accommodation shortage.
According to him, the project had remained pending for three to four years before being expedited and formally inaugurated following pressure from Ducsu. He alleged that the current administration later returned it for revision after requiring every building to be redesigned as a 20-storey structure, delaying implementation.
Accommodation challenges remain particularly acute in women's halls. Female students continue to stay in overcrowded temporary accommodations known as "boro rooms" or "entrance rooms," while the "gono rooms" once common in men's halls have largely been phased out.
Kabi Sufia Kamal Hall Vice President Sanjana Chowdhury Ratri said the temporary rooms were renovated after August 5 and now serve as temporary accommodation for three to four months before students receive permanent hall seats.
Food quality concerns remain
Food quality remains another major concern for resident students.
The manifesto promised safe and nutritious meals, nutritionist-designed menus, food quality assessments every three months, cafeterias in every faculty and a meal voucher programme for financially disadvantaged students.
Students say most hall canteens continue to suffer from poor hygiene, substandard fish and meat, limited vegetable options and inconsistent cooking quality.
Saifuddin Ahmed said the provost standing committee had not approved any proposal to appoint nutritionists. Vice presidents from three residential halls also confirmed that meal vouchers have not been introduced and no new faculty cafeterias have been established.
Farhad said the university treasurer's office has yet to approve plans for new canteens in the science faculty despite Ducsu preparing operational proposals. He added that a proposal to appoint nutritionists was also stalled after the vice-chancellor said the university would implement the initiative, which, according to Farhad, has yet to happen.
Women-friendly campus pledges
Ahead of the 2025 Ducsu election, the Bangladesh Islami Chhatra Shibir-backed panel pledged to make the campus more women-friendly.
Its manifesto promised relaxed hall curfews, safer transport, fewer male staff members in women's halls, more female proctors, a zero-tolerance policy on sexual harassment and cyberbullying, and a stronger legally backed complaint mechanism.
However, several incidents since the election have raised questions about progress on those commitments.
A female student was reportedly asked to leave a giant-screen FIFA World Cup viewing at Shahidullah Hall after allegedly being harassed by a hall union official from the Shibir-backed panel. The official denied wrongdoing, saying she was asked to leave because she was on the field around midnight. The hall provost disputed that explanation, saying the screening had been organised for mixed-gender participation.
Female students later gathered in large numbers to watch another match in solidarity before submitting a list of demands to the university proctor.
During the election campaign, a rival candidate who challenged the eligibility of the Shibir-backed GS candidate in court received an online mass rape threat from an individual reportedly associated with Shibir. The university later suspended the accused for six months.
Farhad told Dhaka Tribune that he had publicly challenged the accused to attend a press conference and offered the victim legal assistance to file a case. According to him, she chose not to pursue legal action.
The Shibir-backed Ducsu sports secretary also faced allegations of photographing a female student inside the university gym without her consent and posting the image online.
Following the election, students also raised concerns over new restrictions, including limits on evening access to the central playground and notices on "decency" displayed in hall guest rooms.
Farhad said Ducsu had undertaken several initiatives for female students, including plans for a women's gymnasium, installing air conditioners in the reading rooms of Fazilatunnesa Hall and Moitree Hall, offering free English-language courses attended mostly by women, and introducing a card-punch security system for women's hall gates. He said several of these initiatives remain pending because the university administration has yet to approve or fund them.
Environmental pledges lag
Environmental commitments have also seen limited progress.
The manifesto promised a cleaner and greener campus through environmental conservation, noise control and improved traffic management. However, the monthly campus cleanliness drives have stopped.
Although campaigns were launched to remove unauthorised vehicles and street vendors from Suhrawardy Udyan and surrounding campus areas, allegations that Ducsu leaders assaulted individuals during the operations drew criticism. The leaders later declined to respond to questions about the incidents.
The proposed registered-rickshaw system with fixed fares has yet to be introduced.
Students also say the promised complaint mechanism for sexual harassment and cyberbullying, along with legal support for victims, remains largely inactive.