In Bangladesh, broadband internet services were restored in selected areas on Tuesday evening after a five-day shutdown. However, mobile internet services are still not restored. The internet was shut down to curtail the violent protest across Bangladesh over the quota reform in government jobs in the last week.
Meanwhile, the government has issued a gazette notification in line with the verdict of the Bangladesh Supreme Court on Tuesday. The Supreme Court on Sunday ordered major reforms in the quota system in government jobs, curtailing quotas to only seven percent from the existing 56 percent.
After massive violence on Thursday and Friday over quota reform, the Bangladesh government on Friday midnight had declared curfew across the country for an indefinite time and deployed an army to assist civilian administration.
In the last week, at least 160 people, including three journalists and a few police personal lost their lives while thousands got injured, many of them were seriously injured. Due to the imposition of nationwide curfew and internet blackout, common people, travellers, daily wagers, and the fragile economy of Bangladesh suffered a lot.
After deployment of armed forces, violent clashes reduced and the situation came under control, still it will take time for the situation to become normal, said Army Chief General Waker-Uz-Zaman on Monday. The Army chief on Tuesday called on the president of Bangladesh Mohammed Shahabuddin at Bangabhaban in Dhaka and during that he said that soldiers will patrol the streets until the return of normalcy in the country, the president’s press secretary told media.
Meanwhile, the government has relaxed the curfew for Wednesday and Thursday from morning 10 o’clock to evening five o’clock. The government also allowed offices to open from morning 11 o’clock to afternoon three o’clock after a four-day general holiday.
On Monday, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina accused Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami group and the opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) for trying to carry out terrorist activities during the curfew. She warned that the government will not spare the “BNP-Jamaat Clique” this time so easily like in the past.
Across the country, law enforcers have arrested more than 1500 people over the last three days in connection with the recent violence; scores of BNP, Jamaat men among them.
By, Navalsang Parmar, Dhaka
