Bangladesh imposes curfew, disables internet services amid student-led protests

DHAKA: As the student-led anti-government protests surge in Bangladesh, the country has imposed a curfew and the authorities have disabled mobile internet services nationwide, citing the need to curb disinformation, reported The Washington Post. Following the curfew, the authorities have also shut down schools and universities indefinitely.

Amid the ongoing countrywide protests in Bangladesh against job quotas, Border Security Forces (BSF) carried out security checks at the Indian Immigration check post in Fulbari, Jalpaiguri.

#WATCH | West Bengal: Amid the ongoing countrywide protests in Bangladesh against job quotas, BSF carries out security checks at the Indian Immigration Check post in Fulbari, Jalpaiguri. pic.twitter.com/YPHfybqE2G

— ANI (@ANI) July 20, 2024

Bangladesh announced a nationwide curfew on Friday evening after clashes between police and various student groups killed dozens of people, according to The Washington Post. The protests started after the students violently backlash against a new policy to reserve a portion of government jobs for descendants of the nation’s freedom fighters.

Moreover, the protesters attacked the state television headquarters in Dhaka and set fire to police booths on Thursday as they called for a “complete shutdown” of the country. The ongoing running street battles between security forces using rubber bullets and tear gas have forced life in several neighbourhoods of Bangladesh to a halt, reported The Washington Post, citing Bangladeshi media.

#WATCH | Amid the ongoing countrywide protests in Bangladesh against job quotas, Indian students were rescued and brought to India through Meghalaya’s Dawki Integrated Check Post along the Meghalaya-Bangladesh border.

(Source: PRO BSF Meghalaya Frontier) pic.twitter.com/RAY04BPr0U

— ANI (@ANI) July 19, 2024

Meanwhile, the websites for several leading Bangladeshi newspapers have either not been updated since Thursday or are altogether inaccessible. Additionally, television channels have also been taken off the air.

The India High Commission in Dhaka has been coordinating with local authorities in Bangladesh to provide adequate security to students who are keen on travelling to India, sources said on Friday.

The Indian mission, in coordination with BSF and the Bureau of Immigration, is facilitating Indian students who are travelling back to India from Bangladesh.

A total of 245 Indian nationals, including 125 Indian nationals and 13 Nepali students, arrived on Friday through the Gede border crossing in West Bengal.

The protests have been driven by demands for reform of the country’s quota system for civil service jobs, which reserves positions for specific groups, including descendants of those who participated in the 1971 War of Independence against Pakistan. (ANI)