Students of different universities of Bangladesh have continued their intense agitation demanding the abolition of quota system in government jobs. The agitators also held a program called ‘Bangla Blockade’ across the country to demand four points including cancellation of quota.
In this program on Sunday, students were seen protesting by blocking various roads and highways of the country including the capital Dhaka.
Due to this program of students, traffic was stopped on various roads and highways outside Dhaka and Dhaka
After blocking several important roads of Dhaka for about 5 hours, the protestors left the road after 8 pm.
With the same demand, the agitating students have again announced a blockade program from 3:30 pm in addition to boycotting classes and examinations in colleges and universities across the country.
In this program under the banner of ‘anti-discrimination student movement’, the students said that they will continue the movement program until the job quota is cancelled.
Although Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said in an event in the afternoon, ‘what is being done in the name of quota movement, is wasting the study time. I don’t think there is any justification for it.’
Due to the students’ movement in 2018 demanding reform of the quota system in government jobs, the government canceled the quota system at that time. Later in 2021, when the children of some brave freedom fighters filed a petition in the High Court, the quota system came back again through a judgment on June 5.
Awami League general secretary Obaidul Quader said in an event at the secretariat on Sunday, ‘The issue on which the students are agitating is a government decision. The court gave a different verdict. We did not decide, the court did.’
In such a situation, the question has arisen if this judgment of the court is upheld, then what will the students do?
In response, Touhid Siam, one of the organizers of Jahangirnagar University in the quota reform movement, said, ‘In 2018, the student movement was held to demand the reform of the quota system. But the government canceled it, so the crisis has been kept alive.’
‘Bangla Blockade’, Dhaka’s roads are almost immobile
Students of different universities of the country have joined the movement under the banner of anti-discrimination student movement since July 1 to demand the abolition of quota system in government jobs.
On Saturday, students protesting from Shahbagh in the capital announced the ‘Bangla Blockade’ program.
It was then said that all the important highways of the country including the capital will be blocked and traffic will be stopped.
According to the pre-announced program, students from different departments and halls of Dhaka University gathered in front of the central library of the university with banners and festoons from noon on Sunday. Later he took a procession around the campus and took a stand at Shahbagh intersection.
Then one by one the students blocked the four roads of Shahbag intersection. As a result, the road from Shahbagh towards Press Club, the road from Shahbagh towards Banglamotor, and the road from Shahbagh to Sciencelab caused severe traffic jam.
After some time, the students broke the police barricade and went to the intersection of Hotel Intercontinental near Shahbagh. There, the road was closed with a position on the road.
In the evening, the students staying at Shahbag intersection said that several of their students involved in this movement were called by the law enforcement forces. They will not leave the program until they are released.
Earlier, around 1 pm, the students of Dhaka College took a procession from Neelkhet intersection and gathered at Sciencelab intersection. At that time, the traffic in the area was stopped.
After some time, the students of Eden Women’s College came to Neelkhet intersection with a procession. Taking position on the road, they stopped the traffic in that area.
At this time, they started giving speeches and slogans in favor of canceling all other quotas except for disabled and backward communities.
A large number of police and law enforcement officers were seen in various areas of Dhaka including Shahbagh, Neelkhet, Sciencelab, Banglamotor around this program of students.
Heavy traffic jams occurred in the capital Dhaka around this program of students demanding cancellation of quota. Traffic is blocked for hours on various roads.
Although the protest program started from noon in the capital city of Dhaka, the students of various universities outside Dhaka observed the ‘Bangla Blockade’ program almost throughout the day .
The students of Jahangirnagar University occupied the Dhaka-Aricha highway in Savar at around 11:30 a.m. with four-point demands. At this time, traffic stopped on both sides of this important highway.
Zahid Bappi, one of the organizers of this movement at Jahangirnagar University, said, “Our movement is to reform the quota system.” We want logically backward communities to get quota benefits. We will not move from this movement until success comes.’
In support of this movement of students, Chittagong University students occupied Chittagong’s sixteen cities, GEC and Oxygen intersection from morning. At this time students of different colleges of Chittagong also joined this movement. Traffic on Chittagong roads and highways was stopped.
The students of Comilla University took a stand in Kotbari area of Dhaka Chittagong highway to demand cancellation of quota. This stopped the traffic of Dhaka Chittagong. Students were seen blocking the road and chanting slogans.
The students of Kushtia Islami University blocked the road with the same demand. They threw tree stumps on the road and lit fires and protested and demanded cancellation of quota.
Apart from this, students of various universities of the country including Dinajpur’s Haji Mohammad Danesh University of Science and Technology, Barisal University, Khulna University stopped traffic on the highway.
Question about the rationale of the movement
Bangladesh General Student Rights Protection Parishad joined the movement demanding that the Prime Minister reform the quota to 10 percent in 2018.
At one stage of the movement, the government abolished quotas for government jobs in grades 9 to 13 (Class I and II) that year.
However, in 2021, when the children of some freedom fighters petitioned the High Court, the quota came back again through a judgment on June 5. After that, the students started a movement on July 1 to cancel the quota. This movement is now spreading in different areas of the country.
In such a situation, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina spoke about this in an event at Prime Minister’s residence Ganobhaban on Sunday morning.
He said, ‘High court’s verdict, protesting against it like this, it is subjudice. Because, from the government, we cannot say anything about this. Because, if the High Court gives a verdict, it has to come again from the High Court.’
Questioning the rationale of the ongoing movement of the students to demand quota, Sheikh Hasina said, “I don’t think there is any justification for wasting the time of studies which is being done today in the name of agitation.”
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina commented on the crisis that is happening due to the deprivation of quota facilities.
He said, ‘The number of opportunities that girls used to get when there was a quota, but they did not get the opportunity in the last few years. But the people of the remote areas remained deprived. They are also not getting jobs and because of such deprivation someone files a case so that the High Court gives a verdict.’
He commented, how many of those who did the anti-quota movement earlier took the Public Service Commission exam and how many passed, ‘that calculation needs to be figured out’.
Education Minister Mahibul Hasan Chowdhury also spoke about this on Sunday. He urged the students to investigate if there is any conspiracy behind this movement.
He said, ‘I want to tell everyone concerned about this matter, sometimes the conspirators want to create an unstable situation by capitalizing on many popular issues. Let us not step into that trap.’
The education minister also said, “Unless a specific verdict comes from our highest court on this matter pending in the high court, commenting on this matter will amount to contempt of court.”
What are the four phases of students?
In 2018, there were large protests in various educational institutions of the country, including Dhaka University, demanding quota reform. The agitating students demanded that the quota system be reformed and brought down from 56 percent to 10 percent.
But then the Ministry of Public Administration issued a circular canceling the quota in government jobs (first and second class).
In 2021, some of the children of freedom fighters filed a writ petition in the High Court challenging the abolition of quota of freedom fighters in that circular. In the judgment of that writ, the court declared that part of the circular invalid on June 5 this year.
Later, the state party applied to the Appellate Division Chamber Court seeking suspension of this judgment. But after the preliminary hearing on June 9, the application was sent to the regular bench of the Appellate Division.
In this situation, four specific demands have been given in the movement that the students have started since July 1 to cancel the quota system.
The demands of the students are
firstly, to cancel the quota system in government jobs announced in 2018 and maintain the merit-based recruitment circular.
The second demand is to abolish unreasonable and discriminatory quotas in all grades of government jobs (except the underprivileged and disabled) as soon as possible by forming a commission subject to the circular being upheld.
Thirdly, the quota facility cannot be used more than once in the recruitment examination of government jobs and if the qualified candidates are not available in the quota, the vacant posts should be appointed on the basis of merit.
Their latest demand is to take effective measures to ensure a ‘corruption-free, impartial and merit-based bureaucracy’.
An agitating student named Touhid Siam said, “There will be no solution to this crisis without reforming the quota system by forming a specific commission.” The discrimination brought back in the name of quota is not reformed, this crisis will not end. We will not move from the movement.’