Amid the ongoing ‘Bangla Blockade’ across the country, the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court today issued a status quo for four weeks regarding the High Court’s earlier order to reinstate quota system in government jobs.

A five-justice bench led by Chief Justice Obaidul Hassan passed the order after hearing two petitions filed by the state and two Dhaka University students regarding the quota system’s reformation.

The court also directed the state to submit a leave-to-appeal against the High Court’s order within four weeks and urged protesting students to return to their classes, said Advocate Jahirul Islam, who represented the students.

On Tuesday, two quota protestors filed an application with the Appellate Division seeking a stay on the High Court’s order reinstating the freedom fighter quota in public service. The Appellate Division scheduled the hearing for today.

Earlier, on July 4, a High Court bench adjourned the hearing on a petition filed by the state seeking a stay on the High Court verdict because the lawyer for the writ petitioner was absent.

The quota system, which reserved 56 percent of positions in government jobs for various quotas, was abolished in 2018. This decision was challenged in 2021 by descendants of freedom fighters, leading to a High Court ruling on June 5, 2024, declaring the abolition of the freedom fighters’ quota illegal.

In response, the government applied to the Chamber Court of the Appellate Division to suspend the order. On July 4, a six-judge bench led by Chief Justice Obaidul Hassan temporarily upheld the High Court’s verdict and instructed the state to file a leave-to-appeal once the full verdict is published, adjourning the case hearing.