This July 11 photo shows demonstrators torching an artwork before the Fine Arts Institute during the violent demonstration demanding cancellation of the quota system at the BCS examinations.
Two cases have been filed against unidentified 1,700 government job seekers in connection with Thursday’s violence in the city’s Shahbagh area.
Sirajul Islam, officer-in-charge of Shahbagh Police Station, said police filed both the cases — one against 500 people and another against 1,200 — under the Bangladesh Penal Code Act with the police station.
On Thursday, the students gathered at Shahbagh intersection demanding cancellation of the quota system in recruitment to government jobs.
However, police swung into action around 11:00am charging baton and teargas shells on the agitating students and fired over 100 rubber bullets.
Later, the students retreated to the Dhaka University campus and vandalised five vehicles, including one of private TV channel ATN Bangla and two private cars, near the Teacher-Student Centre (TSC).
They also vandalised the office of the DU Vice-Chancellor and the gate of his residence.
On information, police rushed over there and lobbed teargas canisters and fired several rounds of rubber bullets to disperse them.
At one stage, activists of Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL), equipped with lethal weapons, joined police and attacked the agitating students, leaving at least 20 people injured.
Earlier on Wednesday, in the face of a movement by the students of different educational institutions, including Dhaka University, Jahangirnagar University, Jagannath University, Dhaka College and Eden College against the quota system at Shahbagh intersection, Bangladesh Public Service Commission (BPSC) said it would review the 34th Bangladesh Civil Service (BCS) preliminary test results.
The results of the 34th BCS preliminary examination were published on Monday, triggering the protest as only 12,033 candidates, out of 225,575, qualified for the PSC’s written examinations.
Source: The Daily Star
