Bangladesh PM Hasina blames opposition for violence, curfew to remain

By Mohammad Ponir Hossain, Ruma Paul and Sam Jahan

DHAKA (Reuters) -Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina blamed her political opponents for deadly violence that swept the country during recent student-led protests against quotas in government jobs, stating on Monday that a curfew would be lifted when the situation improved.

Her comments came a day after the South Asian country's top court agreed to scrap most quotas in a ruling on Sunday, following days of clashes between protesters and security forces that prompted the government to shut down internet services, impose a curfew and deploy the army.

Hospital data showed at least 147 people were killed in one of the worst outbreaks of violence in recent years.

Hasina, 76, won a fourth-straight term in power in January in a national election boycotted by the main opposition party.

"When arson terrorism started, the protesting students said they were not involved in it," Hasina said in an address to business leaders in the capital Dhaka, her first comments since her government ordered a curfew late on Friday.

"We were forced to impose a curfew to protect the lives and property of the citizens. I never wanted it," she said. "We will lift the curfew whenever the situation gets better."

Hasina blamed the main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party and the Jamaat-e-Islami party and its student wing for the violence that started last week.

The parties did not immediately respond to requests for comment but critics, including the BNP, have previously accused Hasina of authoritarianism, human rights violations and crackdowns on free speech and dissent - charges her government denies.

The streets appeared calm in Dhaka on Monday, a day after the Supreme Court ruled in favour of an appeal from the government against a lower court order and directed that 93% of government jobs should be open to candidates on merit.

The ruling scaled down quotas in state jobs previously reserved for groups including families of freedom fighters, women and so-called disadvantaged groups, cutting it to 7% from 56%.

Experts have blamed the unrest on stagnant job growth in the private sector and high rates of youth unemployment that have made government jobs, with their regular wage hikes and other privileges, more attractive.

'48-HOUR ULTIMATUM'

Late on Sunday, protesters gave the government 48 hours to meet a string of new demands, but most appeared to be obeying the curfew on Monday in cities that had seen regular demonstrations after a high court in June reinstated the old quotas.

Thousands were injured in protests that turned violent last week, as security forces fired tear gas, rubber bullets and sound grenades to scatter the demonstrators.

Tanks were seen stationed at several places in Dhaka on Monday, while armed security patrols directed the few motorists who ventured out. There were no reports of violence in the country, officials said.

The new demands from protesters included a public apology from Hasina for the violence, restoration of internet connections and reopening of campuses.

The Anti-Discrimination Student Movement also called for the resignation of some ministers and university officials and the dismissal of police officers deployed in the areas where students were killed.

"We are giving an ultimatum to the government to fulfil our eight-point demand within 48 hours," one of the Movement's leaders, Hasnat Abdullah, told reporters.

He did not say what would happen if the government did not meet the demands. The government did not immediately comment.

Dhaka police said they had arrested 516 people for involvement in "destructive attacks". Police spokesperson Faruq Hossain said three policemen were killed in the violence and more than 1,000 injured.

"Normalcy will return within one or two days," Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan told reporters. The government issued a notification that extended a public holiday declared over the last two days to Tuesday.

Protesters said some of their leaders were detained, including Nahid Islam, who told the media he was picked up by "20-30 people" claiming to be police early on Sunday morning and taken to a room where he said he was tortured until he lost consciousness.

"When I regained consciousness I found myself lying on the streets," he said. Dhaka police denied detaining him.

Bangladesh's $416 billion economy had been one of the fastest-growing in the world for years, but has faced struggles after the COVID-19 pandemic.

Costly energy imports after the war in Ukraine shrank its dollar reserves, which fanned inflation and pushed the government to seek a bailout from the International Monetary Fund.

(Additional reporting by Shilpa Jamkhandikar in Mumbai and Shivam Patel in New Delhi; Writing by Sakshi Dayal; Editing by Andrew Heavens, Bernadette Baum, William Maclean and Alex Richardson)