Bangladesh has begun to sigh with relief as daily life has begun to return to normal following the recent violent movement under the guise of the quota reform movement. In actuality, that apocalyptic state was brought about when a peaceful student movement advocating for the reform of public sector employment quotas descended into nationwide violence, with the active support and participation of certain opposition political parties. The movement for quota reform was launched on July 1, 2024. Initially known as the quota reform movement, it eventually evolved into an anti-government and anti-quota movement, propelled by certain shrewd political forces. Furthermore, the attempts to destroy the country’s mass infrastructures and other violent episodes that occurred during the protests highlighted the depth of the danger and the spiraling of violence to meet narrow political ends.  

The parties involved needed to be extremely restrained and avoid doing anything that would make the situation worse. Thus, from its nonviolent beginnings, the quota reform movement turned violent on July 16 and resulted in the deaths of nearly 200 people, including law enforcement employees. Perhaps, the students were unaware of these consequences. It turned out to be one of the most violent movements in Bangladesh's history.

The manner in which the bodies of four police personnel were exhibited in Jatrabari was utterly repugnant. Jatrabari in Dhaka was the epicenter of tension and conflict, as clashes broke out between law enforcement agencies and hooligans posing as quota reform protestors. What looked to be a nonviolent protest to change the quota system had turned into a chaotic scene. The attacks at the various entry points of Dhaka, clashes on Hanif Flyover, and the blockade of the Dhaka-Chattogram highway, demonstrated the protesters' malicious intent to cut off Dhaka from the rest of the nation. Major arterial routes were blocked which caused much suffering to common people going about their daily lives and livelihoods. 

Targeting of key infrastructure

These criminals' true goals were to destroy the nation's most significant infrastructure advancements of the previous 15 years. The perpetrators targeted numerous significant government and non-government infrastructures, including the main building of the Bridges Authority, the Bangladesh Television Building, the Express Highway, the BGMEA Building, and many others. Over the past few days, numerous significant locations in the capital were subjected to planned acts of vandalism and arson.

Among the most severely impacted are the capitals of Jatrabari, Shonir Akhra, Narayanganj, Mohammadpur, Dhanmondi, Farmgate, Gulistan, Mirpur, Rampura, Mohakhali, and Uttara. Horrible arson attacks have rendered the metro rail stations at Mirpur 10, Kazipara, and Sheorapara completely unusable. Authorities have said it will take nearly a year to fully restart these stations. The internet outage was caused by an attack on the data center and optical fiber. This had brought the entire network of commerce and communication to a complete halt. The nation was cut off from the outside world due to the internet blackout. These steps fueled by vested political quarters will have serious economic consequences. 

The violent conflicts have caused infrastructure damage, supply chain disruptions, and industry closures that have cost Bangladesh billions of dollars in lost revenue and negatively impacted essential industries like clothing, steel, ceramics, and pharmaceuticals. Its ramifications went beyond short-term financial losses. International partners and investors are becoming concerned as the nation's reputation as a stable investment destination has been damaged. Prolonged internet outages, which are necessary for contemporary business operations and communication, have impacted Bangladeshi e-commerce, banking, and international service sectors. Fundamentally, the crisis was a reflection of broader social ferment in a fast-changing economy.

Timely judicial intervention

This prompted the government to deploy the armed forces to support civil administration in restoring law and order and to impose a nationwide curfew starting at midnight on Friday. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's government responded by imposing a curfew and a communication blackout to restore order. The army's deployment was a calculated move to strengthen the civil administration's ability to handle a difficult and unstable situation. They were taken to protect public safety and stop the violence from worsening. 

Meanwhile, the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court delivered its timely decision, overturning the High Court verdict that had nullified the government circular about quotas and retaining just 7 per cent (5 per cent for the children of freedom fighters and 2 per cent reserved for tribal, physically challenged, and third gender) quota for 9th–13th-grade government jobs—a percentage that is extremely similar to the protesters' demands,

Since there are no longer any sons or daughters of original freedom fighters seeking employment, the final percentage is 98 percent merit-based. The decision is welcome, even though it took longer than anticipated, given the current political and social unrest in the nation. The protesting students have also rightly called off their stir along with an announcement to not take to the streets again. So, one can now expect that normalcy will return to Bangladesh very soon. 

(The author is a writer and columnist with a Master’s from the Department of Development Studies, University of Dhaka. Views are personal. He can be contacted at ozairislam800@gmail.com )