Students demand quick publication of gazette
Bangladesh General Students’ Rights Protection Council, a platform that leads the quota reform movement, on Tuesday staged protests at Dhaka University (DU), Rajshahi University (RU) and Jahangirnagar University (JU), demanding quick publication of gazette notification on quota reforms in public services.
Around 11 am, several hundred students from different educational institutions, including Dhaka University, Dhaka College and Eden College, brought out a procession from Doyel Chattar area on the DU campus and marched up to the foot of Aparajeya Bangla after parading Bangla Academy, Public Library and Dhaka University Central Library, UNB reports.
Later, the protesters held a rally at the foot of Aparajeya Bangla.
Addressing the rally, Hasan Al Mamun, convener of the council, said, "We'll continue our movement until our three-point demand is met and we hope that the government will take immediate steps to withdraw the 'false' cases against students and publish the gazette notification on the quota reforms soon."
He also said, "Never think that we are weak. Becausehistory says that students never go back without realising their demands once they take to the street."
Nurul Haq Nur, joint convener of the platform, said, "We will go for tougher movement if our demands are not met immediately. We will also sit with all student organisations to fix the next course of action."
Meanwhile, a group of leaders and activists of Bangladesh Chhatra League under the banner of general students of Dhaka University brought out a procession on the campus welcoming the probe body's recommendationto abolish the quota system in 1st class and 2nd class jobs in civil services.
Earlier on Monday, the body, formed by the government to review the existing quota system in public service, has recommended abolishing the quota system from 9th to 13th grades (1st class and 2nd class) of government jobs.
The quota reform activists staged demonstrations at the RU to press home their three-point demand.
They also brought out a protest rally from in front of Central Library on the campus. Their demands are: Immediate release of the activists, who were detained during the movement, from jail, punishment of the attackers involved in assaulting teachers and students and publication of the gazette notification on the quota reforms in the civil service in line with their earlier five-point demand.
Besides, the students of Jahangirnagar University (JU) staged demonstrations on the campus to press for the demand.
They brought out a protest rally from the central library premises around 12 noon.
