DU Correspondent :
Quota reformists on Sunday threatened to go for tougher movement if their three point demands, including unconditional release of their imprisoned fellows, are not met by August 31.
The other two demands are punishment of the attackers on teachers and students on campuses across the country and publication of gazette notification of quota reformation in line with their earlier five point demands.
Bin Yeamin Mollah, a joint convener of Bangladesh General Students’ Rights Protection Council, the platform of students that led the quota reform movement, came up with the ultimatum from a rally in front of National Museum at Shahbagh in the city.
He urged the government to arrest assaulters who attacked quota protesters as well as the students demanding road safety. He demanded unconditional release of 7 quota reformists and the 22 imprisoned students before Eid-ul-Azha.
Yeamin further said that the demonstration would spread across the country if the arrested quota protesters and the imprisoned university students were not released before the set time.
Movement convener Hasan Al Mamun along with protesters and some guardians of the detained quota reformists and road safety demonstrators took part in the rally
Earlier, the quota reformists were scheduled to bring out a rally from Raju Sculptor but they could not do so as a group of Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) activists brought out a rally from there during the same time.
Meanwhile, Progressive Students Alliance, a platform of left-leaning student wings, also brought out a rally on the Dhaka University campus demanding release of the detained protesters. They also staged demonstration, protesting attacks on students demanding safety roads.
Their five point demands include reducing the quota from 56 per cent to 10 per cent, filling in the vacant positions from the merit list if eligible candidate is not found from the quota, abolishing the special examination for quotas, bringing uniformity in age-limit for government recruitment process, and stopping the use of quota facility for more than once.
Earlier on February 17, Bangladesh Sadharan Chhatra Adhikar Sangrakkhan Parishad, a platform of students and jobseekers, took to the streets and continued protests seeking reduced quota in government jobs at 10 per cent from the existing 56 per cent.
The protestors faced attacks from police and the BCL at places, including capital Dhaka.
The BCL activists swooped on quota reformists on June 30, when the quota reform leaders were preparing for a prescheduled press conference in front of DU central library. It left seven quota reformists injured, including Nurul Haq Nur.
The BCL men also beat four quota protesters in front of the National Museum at Shahbagh on July 1, when they were trying to hold a protest rally.
They once again clubbed quota reform protestors on July 2 when they gathered on the Central Shaheed Minar premises to form a human chain.
The BCL leaders and activists also hit a Rajshahi University student with a hammer and stabbed him with a dagger in front of the RU main gate the same day.
On July 21, the BCL activists once again attacked quota reform movement leaders’ rally at Raju Memorial Sculpture at Dhaka University.
The BCL activists also beat quota reform protesters at Chittagong University and Jahangirnagar University when the protests intensified.
Police arrested at least 7 leaders and activists of the quotq movement, including Rashed Khan, Tarikul Islam, Faruk Hassan, Mashiur Rahman, Jasim Uddin and Suhel Islam since June 30.
