Rising death count forces Bangladesh Student Group to suspend protests for 2 days

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STUDENT PROTEST IN BANGLADESH
Student protest in Bangladesh (Photo: AFP)

The violent protests occurring in Bangladesh have been suspended for 48 hours. The Bangladeshi student group leading the protests, which have turned into deadly violence, made this announcement. The group’s leader said they do not want reforms at the cost of bloodshed in the country. 

The protest, which started against the political quota for entry into government jobs, has now turned violent, resulting in the deaths of approximately 163 people. The Bangladeshi student leader called for a 48-hour halt to the protests on Monday after the Supreme Court’s decision to abolish most of the quotas in government jobs. Over 160 people have died due to the unrest across the country.

Supreme Court’s Order

The Supreme Court has directed that 93% of government jobs should be open to candidates based on merit. The Supreme Court instructed the government to reduce the job quota for families of freedom fighters from 30% to 5%. They stated that the remaining 2% of jobs are still subject to quotas, which are for so-called backward groups and the disabled. The court urged the protesting students to return to their classes and also asked the government to issue an order regarding the quotas.

In June, the High Court reinstated the job reservations that were removed by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s government in 2018. Following this, reports of protests started emerging from various parts of the country, and students took to the streets.

The protests against reservations in government jobs in Bangladesh appeared to have calmed down on Monday after several days. The general public has been given some respite from the curfew. However, communication services have not yet been restored. The protesting students have given the government 48 hours to consider their new demands. On Sunday, the Supreme Court issued an order suspending the High Court’s order of 30% reservation.

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