Why has violence erupted in Bangladesh? More than 300 Indian students returned home

New Delhi. Violent protests have been going on in Bangladesh for several weeks and the deteriorating situation there has forced Indian students to return home. On Friday alone, more than 300 students crossed the border in the Northeast and reached home. More than 100 people have died in clashes between students and security forces and pro-government activists across Bangladesh over the restoration of reservation in government jobs.

Protests that have been going on for at least three weeks escalated on Monday when violence broke out at Dhaka University. Six people were killed the next day, prompting the government to order a nationwide closure of universities.

Many of the students who returned were pursuing MBBS degrees and most of the students were from Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Meghalaya and Jammu and Kashmir. According to NDTV, the two major routes used by the students to return on Friday were the international land port at Akhaura near Agartala in Tripura and the international land port at Dawki in Meghalaya.

The students said they were waiting and watching for the situation to improve but eventually decided to leave Bangladesh temporarily as the internet was almost completely blocked and telephone services were also badly affected on Thursday, leaving them cut off from their families.

Meanwhile, the Indian government on Friday termed the ongoing student protests in Bangladesh as an “internal” matter of Dhaka but also said that it was closely monitoring the situation to ensure the safety of 15,000 Indians living there.

Why did violence erupt in Bangladesh?
University students in Dhaka and other cities have been protesting for several days against the system of reserving public sector jobs for relatives of war heroes who fought for Bangladesh’s liberation struggle in 1971. Violence has erupted in the capital Dhaka and elsewhere during student protests demanding reform of the reservation system. About 105 people have died and many others have been injured in this.

Bangladesh, sheikh hasina