Death toll from student protests over jobs quota climbs to 197 in Bangladesh

DHAKA, BANGLADESH - JULY 24: At least 197 people were killed and hundreds of others injured in Bangladesh since Tuesday last week, claimed local media resources. Despite concerns about the possibility of increasing casualties, the government has yet to release the official death toll. In addition, on Wednesday, Bangladesh's main opposition party claimed that over 2,000 of its leaders and activists have been arrested in the past few days for what they described as "false cases" of “vandalism and arson” during violent student protests advocating for government job quota reforms. However, earlier, authorities announced that at least 1,380 people have been arrested in the last three days across multiple police stations under Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) jurisdiction, with 154 cases filed. Furthermore, the DMP reported a $5 million loss due to the violence linked to the quota reform protests. Protests surged in the South Asian country since last week against the 56% quota system, with the government closing educational institutions in response to the unrest. Some 30% of the 56% quota in public jobs were reserved for the relatives of independence war veterans. However, the country's top court on Sunday directed the government to reduce the quota to 7%, including 5% for progeny of war veterans. While the government has implemented the top court order to reduce the quota in public jobs, it also continued a crackdown against the opposition parties, mainly the Bangladesh Nationalist party and Jamaat-e-Islami for allegedly igniting the protest. (Footage by Niamul Rifat /Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)