Quota protesters lift Shahbagh blockade after one and a half hour

Students and job seekers demonstrating for the cancellation of quotas in government jobs ended their blockade of the Shahbagh intersection after 90 minutes on Wednesday.

They ended the blockade at 5:15 pm.

Earlier, the protesters began their blockade for a second day, demanding the restoration of a 2008 government circular that abolished the quota system in government jobs.

Starting a procession in front of the Dhaka University Central Library under the banner of the Anti-Discrimination Students' Movement, they paraded through various campus thoroughfares before stopping at the intersection around 3:45 pm.

The protest caused traffic to halt, resulting in jams.

Ashraful Islam, deputy commissioner of the Ramna zone, had said they were trying to convince the protesters to leave the intersection to allow for smooth vehicular movement, but the demonstrators had not yet been persuaded.