RANGAMATI — The Anti-Quota Unity Alliance has withdrawn its 36-hour shutdown call after the Rangamati Hill District Council postponed a recruitment exam over security concerns tied to the strike. The alliance announced the withdrawal around 2 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 20.
Nurul Alam, a senior leader of the group, told reporters: “We welcome the decision to postpone the recruitment exam. We expect the district council to make a definitive decision on our six-point demands by Saturday. So we have called off the shutdown from 2 p.m.”
The district council decided to postpone Friday’s recruitment exam in view of candidates’ safety, given the shutdown. This is the fourth time the same exam has been postponed. It was previously postponed on Sept. 19, 2022; May 21, 2024; and Nov. 11, 2025.
The Anti-Quota Unity Alliance announced the 36-hour shutdown beginning Thursday morning at midday on Wednesday, prompting anxiety among candidates and parents. From Thursday morning, the group’s leaders and activists picketed at various places in the city in support of the strike. After reviewing the situation at 1 p.m., district council chairman Kajal Talukdar announced the postponement of the exam on security grounds.
Talukdar said the decision to postpone the exam was made after considering candidates’ travel to and from exam centers and their overall safety.
Leaders of the Anti-Quota Unity Alliance alleged that, instead of following the government recruitment policy of 93 percent merit and 7 percent quota, the district council was seeking to hire on a 70 percent indigenous and 30 percent Bengali quota basis, which they called “extreme discrimination.” The group said it would announce its next steps following discussions after the exam postponement.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report