Days after Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina resigned, the country’s Chief Justice Obaidul Hasan also agreed “in principle” to step down from his post. The decision came after protesters gathered outside the court in the capital Dhaka and demanded the resignation of Hasan and the judges of the Appellate Division.
Mr Hassan, appointed last year, was considered a loyalist of ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who fled the country on Monday and has been taking refuge in New Delhi since then.
According to the Dhaka Tribune report, Mr Hasan will submit his resignation after consulting President Mohammad Shahabuddin this evening. It was also reported that army personnel were deployed in the main and annex buildings as well as other areas around the Supreme Court, and they were urging hundreds of protesters gathered there to maintain peace.
Obaidul Hasan had previously overseen the infamous war crimes tribunal that ordered the execution of Sheikh Hasina’s opponents. His brother was her secretary for a long time.
More than 450 people have been killed so far in student-led protests that began in July against reservation in government jobs, before they also began demanding Hasina’s resignation.
Following Hasina’s sudden resignation, some top appointees, including the central bank governor and the national police chief, had to step down, AFP reported.
Appeal for unity
Bangladesh’s interim leader Muhammad Yunus on Saturday called for religious unity as he embraced the weeping mother of student protester Abu Sayeed, 25, one of the first to be killed in police firing during an anti-discrimination student movement on July 16.
“Our responsibility is to build a new Bangladesh,” said Yunus, who returned from Europe this week.
The caretaker administration in the country has said that restoration of law and order is its “priority”.
Meanwhile, the police union had announced a strike a few days ago, saying its personnel would not return to work until their safety was ensured. According to reports, by Saturday more than half of the country’s police stations had reopened.
Attack on minorities
The fall of the Sheikh Hasina-led government has triggered both celebrations and vandalism in Bangladesh. Protesters first vandalised her official residence in Dhaka, while statues of her father Sheikh Mujibur Rahman were vandalised and toppled.
According to Reuters, multiple reports and TV footage showed vandalism, looting and attacks on minorities and their places of worship.
Hindus make up about 8% of the Muslim-majority Bangladesh population of about 170 million. They have largely supported Hasina’s Awami League party in elections.
On Friday, the Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council wrote to Yunus urging him to protect minorities, claiming their homes, businesses and temples were being targeted.
On Friday, hundreds of Hindus took out a protest march and raised slogans demanding peace.
How did the protests start?
Nationwide protests erupted in the South Asian country after the high court reinstated the quota system that provided 30 per cent reservation in government jobs for family members of freedom fighters and veterans of Bangladesh’s 1971 independence war.
However, the order was later stayed by the Supreme Court. The quota system was scrapped by Sheikh Hasina’s government in 2018 following similar student-led protests.
demands of the protesters
The protesters demanded the government to abolish the quota system, claiming that it was only benefiting the Awami League.
What is the quota system of Bangladesh?
The quota system, introduced in 1972, has undergone several changes since then. Before it was abolished in 2018, the system reserved 56 per cent of seats in government jobs for various groups. However, most of these quotas were benefiting the families of freedom fighters.
