Deadly clashes have erupted on the streets of Bangladesh with students protesting a quota system of the government to fill civil services jobs.
The protests were initially peaceful until Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina deployed the paramilitaries and anti-terrorism squad against the demonstrators.
The quota system reserves 30% of government jobs for descendants of freedom fighters, with smaller quotas for women, minorities, and the disabled.
Students protest to remove quotas for women and certain districts but support those for the disabled and minorities.
Students term the system unfair and claim that most of the positions should be filled based on merit.
In 2018, nonviolent protests over the same had taken place. This led Hasina, then prime minister, to abolish the existing system. But in June 2024, the Supreme Court reinstated the quotas after some families of freedom fighters filed a suit.
The government has shut down schools and colleges. Additionally, it has also slowed down the internet to interrupt the exchange of information on social media.
The worsening situation in Bangladesh, has forced Indian students to return home using any available means, crossing through border points in the northeast on Friday alone.
What’s next: The Supreme Court suspended the High Court’s reinstatement of the quotas after a government appeal. It has set August 7 as the date when it will hear the government’s challenge to the High Court ruling.
The quota system was introduced in 1972 by Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, who led the Bangladeshi fight for independence from Pakistan in 1971.