Komol Chowdhury

Anthony Mascarenhas, editor of the London Times, wrote in his book “Bangladesh a legacy of Blood” that “Bangladesh is a bloody document”; -“Bangabondhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was a first class orator but a third class politician”. It is 100% true that a patriotic leader like Sheikh Mujibur Rahman who dedicated his life to this country has never been born in Bengal and will never be born in the future. Although he sacrificed his life for the people of Bengal,But the introduction of the quota system in government jobs has caused great harm to the country. Due to the introduction of 50% merit and 50% district quota, 50% of the meritorious and less meritorious people have been getting opportunities in the district quota. As a result, since independence, 50% of the unmerited/less meritorious people have been getting government jobs in the district quota, so half of the nation has become meritless. However, if there was no district quota, if 100% of the meritorious people got government jobs, the nation would have been able to reach the highest peak of progress. There is no quota in government jobs in any developed country in the world. In this case, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman showed political shortsightedness by introducing the quota system. It is surprising that no other government has followed Bangabandhu;s path and abolished the quota system in government jobs. The government of his daughter Sheikh Hasina has also fallen because of her father;s quota system.

 It is worth noting that since the rule of undivided India, Cumilla (then Tripura state) has been the bearer and bearer of education and culture. For good reason, since the country gained independence, Greater Cumilla has been number one in education, Greater Barisal is number two and Greater Noakhali is number three. However, there is no district quota in these three larger districts. As a result, 50 percent of the meritorious people of these three districts are deprived of government jobs. Due to the quota system alone, the nation has suffered a huge loss because 50 percent of the meritorious people of these three larger districts are unable to serve the nation.Therefore, the nation is gradually becoming devoid of merit. In addition, 50 percent of the meritorious people of these three districts who are deprived of government jobs are lost in the depths of despair. Each government has basically done injustice to the people of these districts.

The movement that started demanding quota reform has led to the downfall of the AwamiLeague, i.e. Sheikh Hasina;s government. The role of students in this was unforgettable. The united voice of the youth In 2018, quotas in government jobs were canceled in the face of student movements Although it was reinstated, it was reinstated again by the High Court verdict on June 5, 2024. This reinstatement decision sparked intense anger among the young generation. A new fight began under the banner of “Students’ Movement Against Discrimination”. From July 2, processions and rallies centered around Dhaka University and Shahbagh gradually spread across the country. The main driving force of this movement was the university students and job seekers, who had a dream of a future free of discrimination in their hearts. From the very beginning of the movement, students actively participated. They were not only the spokespersons of ordinary students, but also the strategists, organizers and sources of inspiration of the movement. Social media platforms were their main means of communication, where they quickly spread messages, announced programs and encouraged others to join the movement. They presented their demands to the government through peaceful protests, orderly processions and slogans. As the movement was gaining momentum, a comment by the then Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina added fuel to the fire. She called the protesters ‘grandchildren of the king’. Intense protests broke out in almost all the universities of the country. This comment further angered the youth and gave birth to a new consciousness among them. The university campuses were shaken with the slogans of ;Who are you, who am I? RazakarRazakar. Who said, who said, autocracy, autocracy;. After ObaidulQuader;s remarks, the Chhatra League, led by Saddam Hossain, attacked students with indigenous weapons like in 2018. Even female students were humiliated.But this time the students did not back down. They resisted and the Chhatra League leaders and activists were forcedto flee the university halls. This incident created a new confidence among the students and almost all the universities in the country were declared "ChhatraLeague-free". On July 14, 2024, students staged massive protests at night following Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina;s;Rajakar; remarks. On July 15, government supporters including Chhatra League attacked the protesters on the Dhaka University campus. On July 16, there were massive clashes across the country. Government supporters including Chhatra League and Jubo Leagueattacked the protesters. This resulted in deaths. Among them, Abu Sayeed, a student of Begum RokeyaUniversity in Rangpur, was killed by police firing. This killing made the protesters more determined.Student leaders called for increasing the pace of the movement by taking the blood oath of these martyrs. On July 17, Chhatra League leaders were thrown out of the halls of various universities, including Dhaka University, and their rooms were vandalized. That night, mobile internet was shut down, which was part of the government;s crackdown. On July 21, the country;s highest court issued a verdict completely overturning (cancelling and annulling) the High Court;s verdict on the reinstatement of quotas in government jobs. The verdict set a 93 percent merit-based quota, 5 percent for freedom fighters, 1 percent for ethnic minorities, and 1 percent for the disabled and third gender. This verdict was a major victory for the protesters. However, the student leaders were not satisfied with this victory and set a deadline of 48 hours to fulfill four more demands. Their goal was not just quota reform, but the resignation of the government. On July 22, the Prime Minister approved the notification prepared as per the court;s order reforming the quota system. On August 1, six coordinators who were in DB custody were released. On August 3, the anti-discrimination student movement announced from the central Shaheed Minar to fulfill one of its demands: the resignation of the government. The long march program was announced in Dhaka on August 4. This long march was the final stage of the movement. Where student leaders called on the common people of the country to stand by them. On the morning of Monday, August 5, 2024, clashes between students and law enforcement agencies continued at various points in the capital. Many students were killed in the shooting that day. However, at around 12 noon, Army Chief General Waqar-uz-Zaman announced a speech to the nation. At that moment, students and the public thronged the heart of the capital. The gathering of lakhs of people participating in the ;March to Dhaka; program called by the anti- discrimination student movement marched towards Ganabhaban at around 2:30 pm. Immediately after the army chief;s speech, the enthusiastic students and the public chanted slogans, 'What happened, what happened, Sheikh Hasina is running away'. The quota reform movement that started 36 days ago took its final form with the fall of the Awami League government on August 5. On August 6, some anarchy arose in the country without a government and police. However, attempts were made to quickly control the situation. President Md. Shahabuddin accepted the proposal of the anti discrimination student movement to form an interim government under the leadership of Nobel Peace Prize winner Dr. Muhammad Yunus. Parliament was dissolved. On August 7, there was a reshuffle at the top level of the police and Md.Mainul Islam was appointed IGP. On August 8, Dr. Muhammad Yunus returned to Dhaka and took oathas the Chief Advisor at Bangabhaban that night. 14 other advisors took oath with him.

It is worth noting that in January 2024, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina won a fourth consecutive term in the controversial general election in Bangladesh. However, the main opposition party of Bangladesh, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, boycotted the election. When Sheikh Hasinawas elected Prime Minister for the fifth time in the history of Bangladesh, various crises arose over the movement to abolish quotas in government jobs for students. In this, the police shot and killed Abu Sayeed, an honors student of the English Department of Rangpur Begum Rokeya University. The government imposed a curfew. At the same time, the government canceled the registration of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami. However, the highest bench of the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court ruled that 93% merit, 5% children and grandchildren of freedom fighters and 2% were reserved for the backward classes. Abu Sayeed was killed by the police after the verdict. At that time, the students made a point of demand demanding Sheikh Hasina;s resignation. At that time, Awami League General Secretary ObaidulQuader ordered the ChhatraLeague to suppress the students. As a result, leaders and activists of Chhatra League, Jubo League, and Swechchhasebak League took to the field. They started killing and injuring innocent students in the streets and neighborhoods. In this situation, Jamaat-e-Islami and BNP activists took to the streets along with ordinary students across the country, breaking the curfew. At that time, the police massacred them indiscriminately like birds. People were outraged and killed many policemen. At that time, various pressures came on the government from the outside world. Before the outraged student crowd entered and vandalized Ganobhaban on August 5, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina resigned after 12 noon. Sheikh Hasina and Sheikh Rehana safely left for Delhi, India, in an army helicopter. That day, the United States and the United Kingdom, no major country in the world, did not agree to shelter Sheikh Hasina. Only India did. Sheikh Hasina, Sheikh Rehana, Joy, Putul are currently facing allegations of embezzlement worth thousands of crores of taka. Sheikh Hasina fled to Delhi with Sheikh Rehana, leaving the party leaders and workers in danger. However, when Bangabandhu was in a Pakistani prison, he said, if I am hanged in prison, send my body to my East Pakistan. However, Sheikh Hasina, a jealous, vengeful and extremely cruel woman, had the opposite character of Bangabandhu.