The six coordinators of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement have announced the withdrawal of all their programmes.
The announcement was made on Sunday night (28 July) from the Detective Branch (DB) office in Dhaka while they were in DB’s custody.
The coordinators have decided to retract all movement activities as the government has accepted their main demand.
The coordinators include Sarjis Alam, Hasnat Abdullah, Asif Mahmud, Abu Baker Majumdar, Nahid Islam, and Nusrat Tabassum, who were taken into custody earlier.
Nahid Islam read a written statement that included the following:
"Many individuals have been unexpectedly injured and killed as a result of the quota reform movement and the ensuing situation. Furthermore, various violent incidents, including arson attacks on state structures, have occurred. We strongly condemn these unfortunate incidents and demand a thorough investigation and prompt justice.
“Our main demand was a rational reform of the quota system, which the government has already fulfilled. Now, to ensure a congeneal atmosphere at all educational institutions, we urge the government to reopen educational institutions promptly. In the interest of all, we are withdrawing our programmes from this moment,” the coordinator read.
Additional Commissioner of the Detective Branch (DB) of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Mohammad Harun-or-Rashid dined with six coordinators of the quota reform movement after a discussion at his office.
Photo: Courtesy
That night, Harun-or-Rashid shared this information in a Facebook post. He wrote, "The coordinators of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement, the platform for the quota reform movement, were feeling insecure. Therefore, we brought them to the DB office to discuss why they were feeling insecurities."
He further wrote, "After listening to them and informing them about our various plans to ensure the safety of the students, their concerns were alleviated. The DB team of DMP is determined to ensure the safety of the students."