Around five hundred government job seekers yesterday demonstrated on the Dhaka University (DU) campus, demanding reformation of existing quota system in various government recruitment process including Bangladesh Civil Service (BCS) examinations.

They demanded that the government keep 10 percent quota for the freedom fighters, but recruit the remaining 90 percent based on merit.

Currently, 44 percent are recruited on merit and the remaining 56 percent on privilege allocated under various quotas.

The aspirants -- comprising mostly from Dhaka University and from other educational institutes in the capital -- staged a demonstration at the base of Raju memorial sculpture at 11:30am to press home their demands.

The demonstrators initially took position at the Shahbagh intersection at 11:00am but later moved to Raju sculpture as the law enforcers requested them to do so to avert public sufferings in the adjacent area.

They later held a brief rally there under the banner of “Bangladesh Sadharan Chhatra Adhikar Sangrakkhan parishad” (Council for Protecting Rights of General Students).

At the rally, Convener of the council, Imran Hossain, a master's student of Persian language and culture department at DU, read out a written statement addressing the prime minister.

In the statement, the protesters came up with an eight-point demand, which includes recruitment of meritorious students in government jobs if eligible candidates are not found under the quota system, “uniform cut mark” in preliminary examination, reformation of existing quota system following experts' advice, cancellation of recruitment under a fixed quota, full implementation of clauses no. 1 and 2 of the Article 29 of the constitution, as well as preventing discrimination in the recruitment process.

According to two clauses of the Article 29 of the Constitution of the People's Republic of Bangladesh:

(1) There shall be equality of opportunity for all citizens in respect of employment or office in the service of the Republic.

(2) No citizen shall, on grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth, be ineligible for, or discriminated against in respect of, any employment or office in the service of the Republic.

Talking to The Daily Star, Imran Hossain said currently 56 percent of government jobs are reserved for quotas, leaving only 44 percent open for merit-based recruitment.

“The quota system was introduced to facilitate the deprived. But a group of quota holders is abusing it. Many meritorious students are not getting their desired jobs whereas the quota holders are switching jobs frequently under the privilege,” said Imran.

“As a result many important posts of the bureaucracy remain vacant and thousands of qualified students are deprived of the desired jobs,” added Imran.

He also said they are not protesting against the quota system; rather they want its reformation.

In the last few civil service recruitment examinations, a total of 3,500 posts remained vacant as eligible aspirants were not found under the quota. A total of 813 posts remained vacant in the 28th BCS, 792 in the 29th BCS, 784 in the 30th, 773 in the 31st and 338 in the 35th. On the other hand, thousands of qualified job seekers remain unemployed due to an acute competition in the merit quota.

The demonstrators announced that they would organise protest programmes at all educational institutions across the country on Thursday.

Meanwhile, members of Muktijoddha Snagsad Santan Command central unit formed a human chain at the same venue half an hour before them, protesting what they claimed a “conspiracy” against freedom fighters' quota.

They formed another human chain in front of Jatiya Press Club around noon where they also demanded implementation of reserved freedom fighters' quota in all recruitment process.