Bangladesh Prime Minister Hasina called on protest leaders to meet at their official residence Gana Bhavan, saying “the door is open”.

Dhaka: Students in Bangladesh who were agitating for quotas in government jobs are now calling for a nationwide civil disobedience campaign until the resignation of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's government, Al Jazeera reported. Protesters have taken to the streets to demand justice for more than 200 people killed in student-led protests last month over quotas in government jobs.

Students Against Discrimination, the group responsible for organizing the initial protests, rejected an offer to hold talks with Hasina earlier in the day, Al Jazeera reported.

“She should resign and face trial,” said group leader Nahid Islam.

Al Jazeera's Tanveer Chaudhary, who was reporting from Dhaka, said the student movement had turned into a “public movement” and highlighted that people from all walks of life had joined Saturday's protests, demanding the government resign.

He added that there were also clashes between protesters and police in Gazipur and Comilla districts on the outskirts of the capital.

Bangladesh Prime Minister Hasina called on the protest leaders to meet at her official residence, Gana Bhavan, saying “the door is open”.

“I want to sit with the protesting students and listen to them. I don't want any conflict,” she said, according to local media.

In addition, she has also appointed three senior officials to negotiate with the protesters, Al Jazeera reported.
Protests over the resumption of the quota scheme began after Bangladesh's Supreme Court reserved more than half of all government jobs for certain groups, Al Jazeera reported.

The decision has left graduates frustrated as they face a severe unemployment crisis and nearly 18 million young Bangladeshis are out of work, according to government figures.

The protests were largely peaceful until police and pro-government student groups attacked the demonstrators.

Hasina's government eventually imposed a nationwide curfew, deployed the army and shut down the country's mobile internet network for 11 days to restore order.

Interior Minister Asaduzzaman Khan said security forces acted with restraint but were “forced to open fire” to protect government buildings, Al Jazeera reported.

Bangladesh's government has been reacting strongly to the deadly police crackdown, which left at least 200 people dead, including 32 children, and hundreds of pellet gun injuries.

Meanwhile, UN experts have called for an immediate end to the violent crackdown on protesters and to hold them accountable for human rights violations.

UN human rights chief Volker Turk today called on the government to release full details on the crackdown on the protests and provide details of those killed, injured or detained for the benefit of their families.

EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell also called for an international inquiry into “excessive and deadly force against protesters”.

(with ANI input)