Fate of 330 Police Recruitment Deprived Candidates Hangs in Balance at Chief Adviser’s Office

The fate of 330 Sub-Inspectors (SIs) and Sergeants, who were denied police recruitment in 2006, remains uncertain at the Chief Adviser’s Office. For 17 years, these candidates have been fighting a legal battle and awaiting their job appointments. Following the political changes last year, they became more active, receiving assurances from high-level government officials that their demands would be met. However, even after a year, their demands remain unfulfilled.

According to sources, despite the completion of the recruitment process in 2006, the appointments of 536 Sub-Inspectors and 221 Sergeants were canceled in 2007 on the grounds of “partisan considerations.” These 757 candidates had passed physical tests, written exams, viva voce, health checks, and police verification, and were awaiting training at the Rajshahi Police Academy in Sardah. However, their appointments were canceled, allegedly on the unilateral and illegal orders of then-Inspector General of Police (IGP) Nur Mohammad and former DIG (Administration) Benazir Ahmed. The affected candidates have since been demanding reinstatement. At the time, they sought remedy through writ petitions in the High Court but received no relief.

Discussions with the affected candidates revealed that, currently, 207 Sub-Inspectors (male and female) and 123 Sergeants are willing to join the service. In November last year, following their application for reinstatement, the Home Ministry formed a six-member high-level committee. The candidates provided all necessary documentation to the committee. Based on the committee’s recommendations, another committee led by Law, Justice, and Parliamentary Affairs Adviser Dr. Asif Nazrul also made supportive recommendations. Subsequently, the Law Ministry, Home Ministry, Public Administration Ministry, and Police Headquarters endorsed the reinstatement. A high-level ministry committee approved their reinstatement and sent a summary to the Chief Adviser, considering their seniority, age, and training period adjustments. However, more than four months later, the matter remains unresolved. In May this year, the Home Ministry’s committee held its second meeting, making several decisions. It suggested that the applicants’ pleas, orders, and court observations could be reviewed to consider them as a special batch. The committee recommended seeking legal opinions from the Law Ministry on whether they could be appointed on an ad-hoc basis, subject to passing training and medical board requirements. If the government makes a positive decision, a separate regulation could be formulated to manage their recruitment, posting, and promotion. The Law Ministry later recommended their appointment on an ad-hoc basis, citing a precedent from 1991 when a canceled recruitment process was restored in 1997 through a special administrative procedure. On humanitarian grounds, it suggested creating temporary posts for their appointment, which could be abolished upon their retirement.

Mohammad Jahangir Alam, an applicant representing the deprived candidates, told Bangla Tribune, “On February 11, 2007, our appointments were canceled in an extremely inhumane manner due to partisan considerations. After 18 years, the interim government decided to reinstate deprived job candidates across all sectors, considering fundamental and humanitarian aspects.” He added, “I have tried to contact various officials at the Chief Adviser’s Office to inquire about our recruitment process, but I have received no response. Our batch still includes 40 female candidates and people from various religions and communities. We only seek the justice we are entitled to