Armed forces personnel who lost jobs during Hasina regime stage demo
Former armed forces personnel, who were sacked or sent into early retirement during the Sheikh Hasina regime, staged a demonstration in front of the capital's Jahangir Gate of Dhaka Cantonment today to press for reinstatement of their jobs among other demands.
Under the banner of "Sohojoddha", they staged a sit-in and blocked vehicular movement through the intersection there at about 11am, according to a traffic official from Dhaka Metropolitan Police's Tejgaon division.
The demonstrators left the location at about 1:15pm after the chiefs of three services — army, navy and air forces — announced that a committee would be formed within five working days, Sohojoddha Chief Coordinator Naimul Islam told TBS.
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This committee will work to address and meet the demands of the former armed forces officials, he said.
Their three demands are — reinstatement of their jobs with full salary, allowances, and other benefits from the time of dismissal; inclusion in the pension scheme with all government benefits if reinstatement is not possible for any of them; and reforming the legal framework and unilateral judicial system that has led to the dismissal of hundreds of armed forces members.
The demonstration caused a long traffic jam on the roads in front of Jahangir Gate, with the queue of vehicles stretching nearly to the Banani intersection and Farmgate on both sides.
