Bangladesh Supreme Court overturns restoration of quota system for government employment – JURIST

The Supreme Court of Bangladesh on Sunday overturned the restoration of the government’s quota system for civil service employment after days of deadly turmoil and clashes between police and protesters.

The Appellate Division dismissed the High Court’s judgement on quota reinstatement, stating that 93 percent of government employment recruitment would be based on merit, with the remaining 5 percent designated for the freedom warrior quota, lowering the percentage but not removing the contentious quota system for civil service employment candidates, according to the local media reports.

The country’s apex court was scheduled to hear the petition on August 7 but moved up the matter due to growing civil turmoil. Bangladeshi officials extended a curfew throughout the country as the nation’s highest court was due to provide a verdict on the civil service hiring quota.

Bangladesh has been witnessing violent demonstrations for more than a month over the High Court’s decision to reintroduce a 30 percent quota in government posts for the descendants of 1971 Liberation War liberation fighters, with the protesters arguing that such quota appointments are discriminatory and that the appointments should be merit-based.

The turmoil has resulted in a lot of fatalities and injuries, with more than 105 deaths and 2,500 injuries reported so far. The USissued a new travel advisory for Bangladesh on Saturday, cautioning Americans to reconsider their decision to visit the country owing to the present situation of civil upheaval.

The development comes at a time when Bangladesh is struggling with high inflation, shrinking foreign reserves, and growing unemployment.