Bangladesh to formally accept court ruling on job quotas after protests

Dhaka: Bangladesh is expected to formally accept on Tuesday a court ruling to cut quotas for government jobs, media said, meeting a key demand of students whose protests sparked one of the worst outbreaks of violence in years that killed almost 150 people.

Calm prevailed in the capital, Dhaka and most major cities for a second day amid a curfew and an Internet and telecoms shutdown the government imposed after the protests erupted last week.

However, the security situation is still not entirely under control, the army chief, who toured the capital by helicopter on Tuesday morning, told reporters.

Officials said curfew is to be relaxed for four hours in the afternoon, up from three on Monday, to allow people to buy essentials.

The protesters wanted authorities to overturn a high court decision last month that restored a quota system setting aside nearly 60% of government jobs for some people, such as families of those who fought in Bangladesh's war of independence.

The quotas had been scrapped in 2018 by the government of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who accepted late on Monday a Supreme Court ruling to scrap most of the quotas.

The acceptance is expected to be published in the government's formal record on Tuesday, media said, meeting one demand made by protesters.

On Monday Hasina blamed her political opponents for violence and said the curfew, imposed on Friday, would be lifted "whenever the situation gets better".

The protesters have given the government 48 hours to meet eight demands, such as a public apology from Hasina and the re-opening of university campuses shut when the violence began.

On Tuesday, Malaysia became the latest nation to evacuate citizens from Bangladesh because of the violence, with the foreign ministry saying a flight bringing them home was set to arrive in Kuala Lumpur, the capital.

India also said at least 4,500 Indian students had returned home from Bangladesh.