DUCSU leaders protest exclusion of 57 candidates from 49th BCS gazette

Online Desk: Leaders of the Dhaka University Central Students’ Union on Thursday brought out a protest march on the campus against the exclusion of 57 candidates recommended by the Bangladesh Public Service Commission from the 49th BCS (Special) Examination-2025 gazette.They alleged that the government was using the verification process to discriminate against candidates based on their political views.Earlier on Wednesday, the government issued a gazette appointing 611 candidates to the Bangladesh Civil Service (General Education) cadre under the 49th BCS (Special) Examination-2025, leaving out 57 of the 668 candidates recommended by the PSC.After the march, DUCSU vice-president Shadik Kayem, in a press conference, said that the administration was ignoring Article 29 of the Constitution by denying jobs to candidates on political grounds.‘The administration is depriving students of a different ideology of their right to employment, in violation of Article 29. Why don't you just declare that nobody will get a job without a recommendation from the BNP's MPs and ministers and the Chhatra Dal and Jubo Dal?’ he said.He also criticised the BNP government, saying it had become isolated from the people.‘We wanted you to run the country well for five years. But look at the BNP now. They have lost touch with the public and have no ground left under their feet, which is why they are behaving so erratically. Tarique Rahman no longer controls the country, and his MPs and ministers have all failed,’ he said.Shadik also blamed the government's ‘limitless failure and incompetence’ for the power, fuel and fertiliser crises and what he described as unprecedented load-shedding across the country.DUCSU assistant general secretary Mohiuddin Khan alleged that the government was using party-based favouritism in the verification process for BCS and primary teacher recruitment and other appointments to suppress dissent.‘Many qualified candidates, including those who stood first in their exams and departments, have been left out of the gazette just because they hold different political views. This is administrative discrimination,’ he said.He called on the authorities to prioritise merit over party affiliation in recruitment.‘Imposing partisanship on merit could have terrible consequences,’ he added.The 49th BCS (Special) Examination-2025 was conducted primarily to fill vacant posts in the education cadre.More than 312,000 candidates applied for the examination against 683 advertised vacancies.A total of 1,219 candidates passed the written examination, which was held in the multiple-choice question format.Following the viva voce, the PSC recommended 668 candidates for appointment to various posts in its final results published in late 2025.Why don't you just declare that nobody will get a job without a recommendation from the BNP's MPs and ministers and the Chhatra Dal and Jubo Dal?’ he said.He also criticised the BNP government, saying it had become isolated from the people.