Govt cancels appointments of 6 PSC members

The Ministry of Public Administration has cancelled the appointments of six members of the Bangladesh Public Service Commission (PSC) following widespread controversy. The decision was formalized through a notification issued on Monday (January 13).

Deputy Secretary of the Ministry, Abul Hayat Md. Rafiq, confirmed the development to Jago News. The appointments, originally made on January 2, included the following individuals: Professor Dr Syeda Shahina Sobhan, Sabbir Ahmed Chowdhury, Brigadier General (Retd) Dr AF Jaglul Ahmed, Md Munir Hossain, Professor Dr Shahnaz Sarkar, and Dr Md Mizanur Rahman.

Controversy and protests

Among the six, three appointees faced allegations of political favouritism and bias, sparking protests from students and job seekers, as well as objections from PSC officials.

On Sunday, a group of Dhaka University students issued a 24-hour ultimatum demanding the cancellation of the appointments of the controversial members.

Background of the cancelled appointees

Dr Syeda Shahina Sobhan: A former member of parliament from the Jamalpur-5 constituency, elected under the Awami League's banner. She is also known to be a close associate of former Education Minister Dr Dipu Monir.

Brigadier General (Retd) Dr AF Jaglul Ahmed: Served as the Director General of DGFI from 2014 to 2018. Allegations against him include overseeing activities during his tenure involving the controversial "Aynaghar," where detainees were reportedly imprisoned.

Dr Md Mizanur Rahman: A former officer of the 85th BCS batch, he held the position of Director General at the BIAM Foundation during the Awami League's tenure.