The demonstrating BCS job seekers have called a day-long strike programme at all the educational institutions of the country for Sunday, protesting the Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) attack on the agitating students.
They vowed to continue their movement until their demands are met.
The announcement was made in a press release signed by Lincoln Mahmud, who claimed to be a student at Dhaka University's Bangla department, immediately after the agitators came under a fresh attack by BCL men.
The press release stated the strike programme has been enforced to press home a five-point demand, including the cancellation of the quota system in civil service jobs, unconditional release of detainees, withdrawal of cases filed against 1,700 protestors, stopping attacks on the students and punishment of the BCL attackers.
Campus sources said the students gathered at the central library to hold their prescheduled programme, but the BCL men, led by its Dhaka University (DU) unit president Omar Sharif, launched an attack on the agitating students at about 11am, leaving six injured.
When contacted, Omar Sharif claimed to be the son of a freedom fighter, saying: “I took part in the action as part of a move to resist the anti-Liberation forces from their bids to foil the ongoing war crimes trial.”
“I have discharged my duties as a son of a freedom-fighter, not as a leader of any organisation."
Meanwhile, the students of Rajshahi University blocked Dhaka-Rajshahi highway for about half an hour in the morning demanding the cancellation of the quota system.
They also brought out a procession inside the campus and held a brief rally there.
While addressing the rally, the agitating students demanded immediate cancellation of the quota system in recruitment to government jobs including BCS ones.
They also demanded the reassessment of the 34th BCS preliminary test results, threatening to continue their movements until their demands are met.
The students of Shahjalal University of Science and Technology staged demonstrations on the campus to press home the demands.
The speakers called the quota system in government jobs an “injustice” to meritorious job seekers.
Students from different universities started demonstrations against the quota system on Wednesday.
On the day, in the face of movements held at the Shahbag intersection by students from different educational institutions – including DU, Jahangirnagar University, Jagannath University, Dhaka College and Eden College – in protest of the quota system, the Public Service Commission (PSC) said it would review the 34th BCS preliminary test results.
However, the demonstrators continued their protest, and locked into clashes with law enforcers and BCL men on Thursday, leaving at least 30 people injured.
Later, some 17,000 job seekers were sued in connection with Thursday's rampage. Meanwhile, police arrested 40 protesters.
Police later freed 35 students as per the recommendations of the DU authorities, while five detainees were sent to jail.
In a latest development, the PSC is set to publish the reviewed results of the 34th BCS preliminary test on Sunday amid ongoing demonstrations demanding the cancellation of the quota system.
The decision was taken in a meeting of PSC on Saturday, said a handout.
“The meeting decided to publish the results of 34th BCS preliminary test following the existing system,” the handout said.
The results of the preliminary test were published on July 8 in which 12,033 out of 225,775 candidates come out successful.
The unsuccessful candidates sharply reacted to the result as it was published following the quota system, which was earlier followed only in the final results.
In the face of a student movement against the quota system, the PSC on Wednesday said it would review the results.
