New Age | Protests against quota system in govt jobs intensified across Bangladesh

Protests against restoration of 30 per cent quota for children and grandchildren of freedom fighters in government jobs intensified across Bangladesh on Thursday as students blocked Shahbagh intersection in Dhaka, Dhaka-Barishal highway and Dhaka-Chattogram highway.

For the third consecutive day, students blocked Dhaka’s Shahbagh intersection at about 11:45am on Thursday, protesting the High Court’s decision to reinstate the quota system in government jobs.

Around 11:00am, students from various halls of Dhaka University began gathering in front of the Central Library. They then marched through the campus, culminating in a massive rally at Shahbagh intersection.

Some students reported that as they were leaving their halls to join the rally, activists from the Chhatra League at Masterda Surja Sen Hall locked the gate to prevent them from participating in the programme. However, the main procession proceeded to Surja Sen Hall, broke the lock, and freed the students.

Earlier, on Tuesday and Wednesday, protesters blocked major highways and intersections in the capital, demanding cancellation of the quota system.

During the rally, protesters declared their determination, saying, if needed, they would shed blood to realise their demand.

According to another report from UNB, vehicular movement on the Dhaka-Barishal highway remained suspended since Thursday afternoon as Barishal University students put up barricades, demanding cancellation of the freedom fighter quota system in government jobs.

Hundreds of vehicles were stranded on both sides of the highway, causing immense suffering for commuters.

Abdur Rahman Mukul, officer-in-charge of Barishal Port Police Station, reported that students began protesting near the university’s main gate around 12:30pm. They demanded cancellation of all quotas in government jobs, except for those designated for people with disabilities and individuals from underdeveloped districts.

During the blockade, students voiced their concerns, declaring that no discrimination would be allowed through the quota system. They emphasised the need for measures to ensure that people with disabilities and those from underdeveloped districts can avail the quota opportunity once, to prevent general students from being deprived of their desired jobs.

New Age Cumilla correspondent reported that several hundred students from different education institutions in Cumilla blocked Dhaka-Chattogram Highway at about 11:30am to protest at restoration of quota system in government jobs.

The protest created six-kilometer traffic on both sides of the highway causing enormous public suffering.

Students of Cumilla University, Victoria College, Cumilla Medical College, CCN University and Technology, among others, joined the protest.

Earlier on Thursday, the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court upheld the High Court order declaring the cancellation of the freedom fighter quota in government jobs as ‘illegal.’