Students agitating for reform of quota system in government jobs held a protest march at Dhaka University at midnight.
Responding to the call of the anti-discrimination student movement in Dhaka University around 11:15 pm on Sunday, the students came out of the hostel with a protest march.
Procession of students from all halls of Dhaka University
Students of all halls, including the student hall of the university, participated in the protest march. Besides, the students of Chittagong University, Jagannath University, Comilla University are also reported to have marched in their respective campuses at night.
It can be seen on the ground that around 10:30 pm, the students of Kabi Jasimuddin Hall, Vijay Ekatar Hall, Master The Surya Sen Hall, Haji Muhammad Mohsin Hall, adjacent to the Dhaka University Hall, started chanting slogans. After the Rokeya Hall, the same slogans echoed from every hall, including the poet Sufiya Kamal Hall. Later, around 11:15 p.m., hundreds of thousands of students from Hallpara gathered. At that time, when they wanted to enter the Victory Ekatar Hall, they faced obstacles from the Chhatra League. But the angry students broke the barricade and entered and brought their supporters. At that time, Asif Ahmed, the coordinator of the anti-discrimination student movement, was attacked.
Then the students took out the students from there and came to the foot of the Raju sculpture of TSC with a procession. At that time, many students of the girls’ residential hall also joined them. Later, they took a procession from there and came in front of the residence of the Vice-Chancellor of Dhaka University. After staying there for a while, they marched and gathered at TSC and stayed there.
At this time, the students started chanting slogans like ‘You are who I am, Razakar Razakar’, ‘This is Bengal’s soil, Razakar’s base’, ‘I wanted rights, I became Razakar’.
Quota movement of Rajshahi University students
Later, around 1:30 am, they finished the stay program and went back to the hall. At that time, the leaders of the anti-discrimination student movement demanded the withdrawal of the Prime Minister’s speech.
A student who participated in the protest said that the students who were detained in the hall were rescued and joined in the procession.
Rifat Rashid, co-coordinator of the anti-discrimination student movement, said that Hallgate was kept closed in 1971. Asif Bhai, one of the coordinators of the anti-discrimination student movement, was attacked while trying to rescue the detained students there. Another student who participated in the movement said that most of the people of the country do not want any quota, including the quota of brave freedom fighters. People of the country want to be appointed to government jobs through merit.
Earlier, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina held a press conference on her visit to China on Sunday afternoon. There, the prime minister answered the question of the reform of the quota system in government jobs.
