Dignitaries call for improving lives and livelihoods of marginalized masses

A seminar on the plight of downtrodden and marginalized masses across Bangladesh was held at the National Press Club in Dhaka on Friday (18 April 2025). Strong emphasis was laid on incorporating the task of improving the lives and livelihoods of underprivileged people called "Hori Jon" in statecraft and reform initiatives.

Hori Jon community includes cleaners, cobblers, ethnic minorities, lower caste Hindus, waste disposal employees whose sufferings and pangs are often unrecognized. Professor Anu Muhammad of Jahangirnagar University, author and researcher Altaf Parvez, Barrister Sara Hossain, Professor Tanzim Uddin Khan, Department of International Relations, Dhaka University, Additional Secretary Bijoy Krishna Debanath of Social Welfare Ministry, Hori Jon rights activist Liton Basfor, President of Bangladesh Nari Mukti Kendra Seema Dutta, President of Minority Rights Forum Utpal Biswas and another few individuals spoke at the seminar.

Professor Anu Muhammad called upon the authorities concerned to eliminate discrepancies and inequalities faced by Hori Jon people and to facilitate them with proper education and healthcare services. Professor Anu Muhammad also urged workers and repressed people to become united on their own political platforms.

Bijoy Krishna Debanath said that Hori Jon people and dalits have been pushed backward by certain vested quarters in a premeditated way. Bijoy Krishna Debanath assured that he would talk to Adviser Sharmin S Murshid about the views, demands and observations expressed in the seminar.

Barrister Sara Hossain said, "Quotas for some particular groups of Bangladesh's population need to be retained. All quotas can't be abolished grossly. Most of the poverty-stricken women and children often face acute deprivations and torment."