Bangladesh quota reform movement
| Bangladesh quota reform movement | |
|---|---|
A protester in the 2024 movement carrying the Bangladeshi flag with the slogan "One point one demand, Quota not come back" written on his body. A rally of female student protesters in BUET during the 2018 movement, with the protest sign written "Reform Quota". | |
| Date | First phase: 6 June – 18 July 2013 Second phase: 17 February – 18 July 2018 Third phase: 6 June – 3 August 2024 |
| Location | Bangladesh and abroad |
| Caused by | First and Second Phase: Quota system of Bangladesh Civil Service Third Phase: Reinstating of the pre-2018 quota system |
| Goals | Reduction of quotas in public sector jobs and education for a merit-based system |
| Methods |
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| Resulted in | First Phase: Not Successful Second Phase: The government issued a circular reducing reserved quotas for government jobs from 56% to 35% and eliminating the freedom fighters' quota. Third Phase: The Appellate Division of Supreme Court orders 93% recruitment in government jobs to be based on merit and 5% to be reserved for the children of freedom fighters, martyred freedom fighters and Biranganas, 1% for the ethnic minorities and 1% for the third gender and the disabled people, with the public administration ministry publishing a gazette notification in line with the Supreme Court verdict. |
| Casualties | |
| Death(s) | Third phase: 650-1,000+ |
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The quota reform movement in Bangladesh was organized to demand a reduction in government job quotas and shift toward merit-based recruitment. There were three significant protests. The first occurred in 2013, when university students opposed the disproportionate allocation of jobs through quotas. In 2018, a second wave of protests led to a government circular favoring the protesters, but it was later invalidated by the Supreme Court. This sparked a third wave of protests in 2024, during which violent clashes between students, the police, and Chhatra League occurred, contributing to the movement turning into a non-cooperation campaign leading to the fall of the Hasina government.