Quota Demo: Procession, strike on campuses today

Public service jobseekers will march on college and university campuses across the country today to press home their demand for publication of a gazette regarding abolition or reform of quota system.

The demonstrators will also observe a two-hour strike at colleges and universities as the government failed to issue the gazette by Thursday, the deadline set by the protesters.

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“The strike will be observed from 11:00am to 1:00pm tomorrow [today],” Hasan Al Mamun, convener of Bangladesh Sadharan Chhatra Adhikar Sangrakkhan Parishad, told a press briefing at the Dhaka University Central Library premises yesterday.

The protesters on Wednesday threatened to begin demonstrations from Sunday if the government failed to publish the gazette by Thursday.

Mamun alleged that criminals attacked their fellow protestors at Comilla University and police took pictures of protesters in Rangpur and threatened to arrest them.

Besides, one of the joint conveners of the platform, Jashim Uddin Akash's house was attacked by vandals on Friday, Mamun added.

He urged the government to punish the perpetrators.

Nurul Haque Nur, another leader of the platform which has been leading popular demonstrations for quota system reform in civil services, said Public Administration Ministry was “joking around” in the name of forming a committee regarding the issue.

“The ministry authorities are claiming that they cannot publish the gazette as they did not get any directive from the prime minister.

“But we all know the premier has said twice that there would be no quota in civil service,” he said.

Protesters had announced launching fresh demonstrations after Cabinet Secretary Mohammad Shafiul Alam on May 7 said there was no progress regarding the gazette as officials received no directive from the prime minister.

Mozammel Haque Khan, senior secretary of the public administration ministry, somewhat repeated the same statement the next day.

Mozammel, on Thursday said a proposal for forming a committee was sent to the Prime Minister's Office.

Awami League Joint General Secretary Jahangir Kabir Nanak on April 27 met the protesters and assured them that the government would publish the gazette once the prime minister, who was in Australia at the time, returned.

Following the assurance, the leaders of the quota reform movement postponed their agitation until May 7.

In April, students of public and private universities across the country took to the streets with the demand. Police charged truncheons and fired tear gas shells on the demonstrators on DU campus, injuring at least 163.

The protesters blocked key points in the capital and roads and highways elsewhere.

In the wake of mass protests, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in parliament on April 11 declared that the quota system would be scrapped.

BCL MEN 'ATTACK' PROTESTORS

Some Chhatra League activists of Dhaka University's Bangabandhu Hall allegedly swooped on the protestors last night when they went there to invite students to join their programme today.

Witnesses said some leaders of Bangladesh Chhatra Adhikar Sangrakkhan Parishad, including Nurul Haque Nur and Muhammad Rashed Khan, were briefing students at the dormitory's reading room about their protest procession today.

A band of BCL men of the hall, led by BCL hall unit general secretary Al Amin Rahman, attacked them and tried to get them out of the room, claimed a witness wishing anonymity.

The witness said the BCL men grabbed the protesters, dragged them outside and tore clothes of some.

Nurul Haque Nur told The Daily Star, “We were talking with students. Suddenly, some BCL leaders led by Al Amin Rahman attacked us. They drove us away.”

Al Amin Rahman denied the allegation but admitted he asked the demonstrators to leave.