Police on Friday foiled an attempted rally by government jobseekers and students who tried to gather at Shahbagh intersection to announce their next course of action demanding cancellation of quota system from BCS examination. Police picked up about 40 students randomly from Shahbagh and adjacent areas in the afternoon. When contacted Office In-Charge of Shahbagh Police Station Sirajul Islam said 36 people were detained for questioning.
Meanwhile, police filed another case against 1,200 persons in connection with Thursday’s incidents of vandalism and clashes at Shahbagh and Dhaka University campus between police and government job seekers, who were staging demonstration demanding cancellation of quota system from BCS examination.
Abdul Rouf, a sub-inspector of police, filed the case with Shahbagh Police Station on Thursday night against unknown 1,200 persons. With this the total number of accused in two cases stood at 1,700.
Dhaka University authorities on Thursday evening filed a case against unknown 500 students in this connection. SM Quamrul Ahsan, chief security officer of DU, filed the case with Shahbagh Police Station on Thursday night.
MA Jalil, Inspector (Investigation) of the Police Station told reporters on Friday that of the 1,200 student names of nine persons were mentioned in the First Information Report (FIR).
Those were named in the FIR are: Hafizur Rahman, Tauhidul Islam, Shikder Didarul Islam, Motiur Rahman, Zahirul Islam, Jonayed, Nurul Huda, Raihan Kawser and Arif Hossain. All the nine are the students of Dhaka University.
Officer In-Charge Sirajul Islam told reporters all the enlisted nine were arrested from the DU campus. Besides, 15 more were arrested from different areas of DU campus on Friday in this connection.
Meanwhile, two organisations have started movement to defend the quota system for government jobs only after two days of protest against quota system.
Amra Muktijoddhar Sontan and Muktijoddha Sangsad Sontan Command jointly formed a human chain in front of the National Press Club at about 11:00am and staged demonstration demanding retention of quota system and protesting trampling the flag of freedom fighters and setting fire to it.
Leaders of two organisations demanded continuation of quota for the children of valiant sons of the soils who sacrificed their lives in the 1971 liberation war.
Addressing the function, the leaders of the Amra Muktijoddhar Sontan and Muktijoddha Sangsad Sontan Command termed the anti-quota movement as conspiracy of Jamaat-Shibir. They called upon the meritorious students not to fall in the traps of Jamaat-Shibir.
Preserving 30 per cent quota for freedom fighters and their children is not a mercy of anybody, they added. President of Amra Muktijoddhar Sontan Humayun Kabir said that they could not understand about the motive of the anti-quota movement that was started after the publication of preliminary results of 34th BCS examination.
– Staff Reporter
