A paradigm shift in the non-political student movement for reform to quota system in government service in favour of an anti-discrimination revolution has made history. Few people believed that an innocent quota reform movement could transcend the boundary to gain the momentum of an avalanche sweeping everything before it ---in this case a well established powerful regime of Sheikh Hasina. Where the political parties opposing the government failed, the movement waged by common students apparently with no allegiance to any political party has succeeded to depose a plutocracy headed by Hasina serving for five terms ---four of which are consecutive with the fourth curtailed prematurely.
When they launched their campaign for prioritising merit, the demand was rather modest and even if their initial achievement in terms of quota share in government recruiting policy is taken into consideration, they would have got more than they asked for. But things turned violent primarily because of irresponsible handling of the situation and infiltration of elements who had agenda other than the original ones. The firing by the police on unarmed protesters exposed the autocracy in the garb of sham democracy. When the first shot was fired on demonstrators and the bullies of student wing of the just departed ruling party unleashed their brutality against their fellow students, any vestige of democracy ceased to exist. The bell also began to toll for the government to cease to be.
As the regime lost its equanimity and grew brutal, the protesters also challenged it with ever more steely resolve. School, college and madrasha students all across the country also joined the demonstrations. With the casualty figures piling up during the five days of insanity between July 19 and July 23, guardians of students and various organisations came to the street in support of their wards. It now turned out to be a common cause of establishing the principle of non-discrimination in society. Thus did the relatively limited premise of quota for students on the basis of merit transitioned to the one-point anti-discrimination upheaval.
Now what exactly does this anti-discrimination policy or principle mean? It looks so simple but the intrinsic quality of a society free from discrimination or by extension disparities is embedded in the socialist ideal as espoused by Karl Marx. Market economy draws its strength from private enterprise and profit which ends up creating oligarchy and plutocracy. Bangladesh under the successive military or autocratic and, later on, elected governments has digressed from the original principle of distributive justice so far as wealth creation is concerned. Wealth has been concentrated in a few hands of the privileged courtesy of abuse of power and privileges.
The birth of the country, however, was with the dream of ensuring the quality of life of the people on the strength of equitable distribution of wealth. That dream has long faded in the distant horizon. The new generation of dreamers have once again kindled the hope for reviving that long lost dream. With a small beginning like all great revolutions, the germination of the dream has been made possible because of the inherent seed of equitability in the campaign for doing justice to the quota share.
Sure enough, the challenge of making this happen is daunting only more so because there are forces across the political divide, who are unlikely to let go their grip on the entrenched system that guarantees their exploitation of resources and power. Political parties dominated by vested interest groups have discredited themselves by their unlimited avarice for wealth and abuse of power at the cost of common people's welfare and rights. The young men now leading the student movement from the front have struck the right chord and it has appealed to the masses who now find themselves with the back to the wall following decades of maldistribution of wealth and high inflation.
So, one righteous cause of modest makeup has transformed into another of expansive dimension. Here lies its unlimited potential as well as its danger---the potential because it can lead to epoch-making changes in society and the danger because vested interest groups will try to do everything to foil it before it can take off. No doubt, the students who have driven out one such stake holder in the established system will have to keep vigil and be brave in order to press for their one-point agenda that would not allow replacement of one evil by another. They must remain clear in their minds about what is necessary to attain their objective and would not be dictated by any partisan quarters.
Actually, it is an exploitation-free country that is in the interest of the majority of the people. The underlying message is economic emancipation of the common people who are deprived of what they actually deserve. Social discrimination and disparities are an affront to humanity because it denies some people of their right to live a minimum decent life creating a condition for some to amass stupendous amount of wealth mostly by unfair means. The only hope is that the student power---by extension people's power---can triumph against all odds.
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