Public university students on Monday blocked highways, brought out protest processions and held rallies demanding cancellation of the High Court order for the restoration of 30 per cent quota for freedom fighters鈥� children and grandchildren in government jobs.
The protesters called upon all university and college students across the country to bring out mass processions today at 2:30pm, if their demand was not met.
Students of Jahangirnagar University blocked Dhaka-Aricha highway for about half an hour and vehicular movement was halted in the country鈥檚 one of the busiest highways.
Jahangirnagar University students gathered in front of the Central Shaheed Minar premises on the campus at about 11:00am on the day and brought out protest procession towards Dhaka-Aricha highway chanting slogan for a discrimination-free country.
The protesters sat on the highway to press home their four-point demand 鈥攅nsuring merit-based recruitment in public service, upholding the previous circulars issued in 2018 that abolished the quota system introduced in 1972, giving appointment to qualified candidates from the merit list if any eligible candidates are not found in quotas for marginalised sections, and ensuring impartial and merit-based bureaucracy.
鈥楩reedom fighters are getting monthly allowance and they are no longer belongs to vulnerable community. Such privilege can be given to the vulnerable and disadvantaged groups. Thirty per cent quota for freedom fighter families is an injustice to others鈥�, protester Touhid Md Siyam said.聽
The protesters warned of a tougher movement from July 4 if the Appellate Division does not comply with their demand.
Dhaka University students held a rally following a protest procession starting at 11:00am against the High Court order to reinstate quotas.
The procession began from in front of the university鈥檚 Central Library and marched through important points on the campus before ending at the TSC鈥檚 anti-terrorism Raju Memorial sculpture.
During the procession, students chanted various slogans, including 鈥楲et鈥檚 rise again with the weapons of 鈥�18鈥�, 鈥楾he student community has awakened, it has risen鈥�, and 鈥楧own with the quota system鈥�.
The students announced a boycott of classes and exams at all universities and colleges till July 4.
Naheed Islam, one of the coordinators of the movement, announced a three-day action plan.
He said a mass procession would be held at 2:30pm today from DU Central Library and also called upon students of all universities and colleges across the country to observe the same programme at the same time.
In addition, on July 3 and 4, students of Jagannath University, seven colleges affiliated with Dhaka University, and other institutions under the National University in Dhaka will gather in front of the Raju Memorial sculpture to stage demonstration.
At Rajshahi University, students formed human chain and brought out a protest procession for the cancellation of the HC order and quick reform in the existing quota system.
Several hundred of them under the banner of RU general students formed a human chain on the university鈥檚 Paris Road and brought out a protest procession on the campus to press home their demand.
Addressing the human chain, population science and human resource development student Amanullah Aman said that their demand was not that the quota in the government jobs should be abolished completely, but partially.
On June 5, the HC asked the government to restore the 30 per cent quota for children and grandchildren of the freedom fighters in government jobs.
On October 4, 2018, the government issued a circular abolishing all the 56 per cent quotas in the public service in the wake of street protests by the public university students and jobseekers demanding reforms to the quota system introduced in 1972.
Until the abolition, about 56 per cent of government jobs were reserved for candidates from various quotas. Of them, 30 per cent were for freedom fighters鈥� children and grandchildren, 10 per cent for women, 10 per cent for people of underdeveloped districts, 5 per cent for ethnic communities and 1 per cent for physically challenged people.