Indians in Bangladesh asked to stay indoors as students protest turns violent

Indian nationals, including students, living in Bangladesh have been advised to minimise their movement outside their house amid the ongoing nation-wide violent clashes against a controversial quota system in government jobs.

The Indian High Commission in Bangladesh has also issued some 24-hour emergency numbers for nationals living in the protest-hit Asian nation.

India’s advisory to nationals in Bangladesh

“In view of the ongoing situation in Bangladesh, the Indian community members and the Indian students residing in Bangladesh are advised to avoid travel and minimise their movement outside their living premises,” the advisory read.

“In case of any urgency or need for assistance, please reach out to the High Commission and our Assistant High Commissions,” the advisory further read.

6 killed in Bangladesh violent protests

As many as six people, including four students, have died and more than 400 others have been injured in the protests that erupted in Bangladesh with agitating students demanding reforms in the quota system in government jobs.

On Wednesday, July 17, the protesting students have also announced plans to enforce a complete nationwide shutdown on Thursday (July 18) in response to the actions of the security forces.

In a Facebook post, a key coordinator of the movement, Asif Mahmud, said all establishments, barring hospitals and emergency services, will remain closed, and only ambulance services will be permitted to operate.

Why there are violent protests in Bangladesh?  

Protests have rocked the country following a June 5 order of the Bangladesh High Court reinstating the 30 per cent quota for freedom fighters and their descendants in government jobs, which was repealed in 2018 after a massive agitation led by students and teachers back then.

Till 2018, 56 per cent of the government jobs in Bangladesh were reserved for various categories with the majority – 30 per cent – being reserved for family members of veterans who had fought in the 1971 Bangladesh liberation war.

Women and people from underdeveloped districts were allotted 10 per cent reservation each in government jobs, while the members of the tribal communities got 5 per cent and 1 per cent was reserved for people with disabilities.

The High Court Division of the Bangladesh Supreme Court, on June 5 this year, had directed overturning of the 2018 order repealing all reservations, particularly the contentious 30 per cent freedom fighters’ quota.

The resistence started showing up in Dhaka in June and soon protests gathered paced after Eid-ul-Adha festivities ended on June 17.

On July 7, the nation-wide Bangla Bandh came into effect, even as the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court stayed the implementation of the order for a month.

Now, protestors have been demanding for the removal of discriminatory quotas from all grades, to limit the overall reservation to 5 per cent for people from the backward class as identified in the constitution, and to pass a bill in parliament to make the suggested changes.

On Monday (July 15), protests got violent after clashes broke out between the anti-quota protestors, Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL - the student wing of the ruling Awami League) and the Bangladesh police across several universities in the country.

PM Sheikh Hasina reacts

Later on Wednesday, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in a televised address to the nation, called for “patience until a final verdict on government job quotas is delivered”.

She said that the incidents surrounding the quota protest were “painful”.

“The government adopted a tolerant approach from the outset of the protest, while police assisted the protesters in holding demonstrations, she said.

In her address, Hasina promised jobs and other assistance for the families of those killed in the violence.

With inputs from agencies