Police detain 14 protesting cancelled teaching jobs

Police have detained 14 protesters from the Shahbagh intersection after a High Court ruling nullified their appointments as assistant teachers in government primary schools.

Masud Alam, deputy commissioner of the Ramna Division of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police, told bdnews24.com: “They are young, and they are making the same mistake again and again. We were trying to clear the road, so we brought in a few people. However, they will be released after verification.”

“For now, seven male and seven female protesters have been taken in,” he added. “We will release them.”

Candidates whose appointments as assistant teachers in government primary schools in Dhaka and Chattogram divisions were cancelled by a High Court ruling have been protesting for several days. When they blocked the Shahbagh intersection on Thursday afternoon, police moved in with batons and water cannons to disperse them.

Undeterred, the protesters returned later in the day, gathering in front of the National Museum for a sit-in demonstration.

Abu Hanif, one of the candidates whose appointment was cancelled, told bdnews24.com: “We have now taken up a position in front of the National Museum. We will not leave the road until our appointments are confirmed.”

Though they had announced not to block the road, the candidates obstructed Dhaka’s Shahbagh intersection on Thursday afternoon, prompting police intervention.

The protesters had staged a sit-in outside the Directorate of Primary Education in Mirpur on Wednesday. On Thursday morning, they moved to Shahbagh, where they took up position. In the afternoon, they escalated their demonstration by blocking the intersection, drawing a swift response from police.

After meeting with Primary and Mass Education Advisor Bidhan Ranjan Roy Podder, and other ministry officials at the Secretariat on Tuesday, the candidates pledged to hold a peaceful sit-in without blocking the road.

Their protests began after the High Court, in a ruling on Feb 6, cancelled the appointments of 6,531 candidates who had been selected under a quota system for teaching positions in government primary schools in Dhaka and Chattogram divisions. The court ordered the results to be reissued based strictly on merit. Since that night, the affected candidates have continued their demonstrations. The Ministry of Primary and Mass Education has since filed an appeal seeking a review of the verdict.

Abul Hashem, a candidate from Noakhali’s Companiganj Upazila whose appointment was cancelled, called the High Court’s ruling “discriminatory” while speaking to bdnews24.com.

At a press conference on Monday evening at the Foreign Service Academy in Dhaka, journalists pressed the primary and mass education advisor about the protesters’ demands.

“A verdict has been given by the High Court,” he said. “We have appealed for it to be reconsidered.”