July 5, 2024: Nationwide protests persist despite holiday

Even on a holiday, the quota reform protests show no sign of slowing. Students across Bangladesh take to the streets, block roads, form human chains, and voice their rejection of the reinstated quota system in government jobs. What began as student anger has now grown into a nationwide movement, with teachers, political groups, and ordinary citizens extending their support.

In Chattogram, students of Chittagong University gather at Shaheed Minar and later block the Sholoshohor road from 4:00pm, halting traffic for nearly an hour and a half. They chant slogans demanding an end to discrimination and call for the complete abolition of the quota system.

In Dinajpur, braving rain, students of Hajee Mohammad Danesh Science and Technology University (HSTU) hold their protest in front of the campus gate. They raise slogans such as "Merit, not quota!" and "No place for discrimination in Golden Bengal," standing firm in their demand for fair recruitment.

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In Tangail, students from Mawlana Bhashani Science and Technology University form a human chain at the campus entrance, joining the growing national chorus for justice and equality.

Protests also erupt at Jahangirnagar University, where students block the Dhaka-Aricha highway for about 20 minutes in the afternoon. Their blockade creates a two-kilometre-long traffic jam as they press their four-point demand, including the immediate cancellation of the quota system.

In Khulna, students of Khulna University stage demonstrations and block roads in the Shiromoni area, bringing traffic to a halt and amplifying their demands.

In Gopalganj, students from Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Science and Technology University hold protests for the third consecutive day, demonstrating the movement's resilience and growing geographical spread.

Teachers, too, join the tide of protests. At Dhaka University, many teachers express solidarity with the anti-quota movement. The Dhaka University "white panel" -- a platform of pro-BNP and Jamaat teachers -- extends formal support to the students.

The movement of teachers and staff against the proposed Universal Pension Scheme also continues across 39 public universities nationwide.

Meanwhile, progressive political alliance Gonotontro Moncho holds a rally in front of the Jatiya Press Club in Dhaka, where its leaders accuse the government of trying to crush these movements through repression. Jonayed Saki, chief coordinator of Gonosonghoti Andolon, declares, "The government has entered a death game. It is killing people, abducting dissenters, and destroying the country, yet it refuses to relinquish power."

Saki affirms that the student protests are genuine and not politically manipulated. "We support the students' movement. We support the teachers' movement. We stand with every movement of the people of this country," he says. He warns that the government is deploying goon squads and helmet gangs to suppress protests on campuses, but insists that these tactics cannot defeat the collective uprising.

As the day ends, it is clear that the July uprising is spreading its roots deeper into the country's political landscape -- transforming into a broader movement for democracy, accountability, and fairness.