No political motive behind sacking of 252 SI cadets: Home affairs minister

There was no political motive behind the dismissal of 252 cadet sub-inspectors (SIs) from the Bangladesh Police Academy in Sarda, Rajshahi on charges of indiscipline, said Lt Gen (retd) Md Jahangir Alam Chowdhury, Minister of Internal Affairs.

Speaking to reporters after the third meeting of the advisory council committee on law and order affairs at the home ministry in Dhaka today (October 22), he did not specify what the indiscipline charges were.

“Discipline is a very broad term. Its scope is broad. The academy would be better able to explain who has been discharged for what type of disciplinary infraction. I am not completely familiar with that process.

“We have already issued a recruitment notification to fill the vacancies. We will complete this recruitment process as soon as possible.”

Jahangir also stressed that this development was not a major blow to the law and order situation.

When asked if SIs were dismissed because of their political affiliations, Jahangir said: “They were dismissed for academic misconduct. This happens more often than you think. commitment when it comes to of discipline

“In this case, the number (of people) involved is small. If the whole batch had been found guilty of misconduct, they too would have been dismissed. There is no political motive behind their dismissal. Academic instructors would be most suitable to give more details,” he added.

Regarding today’s meeting on law and order, the Home Secretary said that many issues were discussed.

“Law enforcement agencies will have to be more proactive in maintaining law and order. The political affiliations of criminals and those inciting protests and rallies could soon be revealed.”

He continued: “Instead of protesting in the streets, those with various demands can discuss their problems with the committee that the government has formed to deal with these issues. Street protests cause traffic jams and other disruptions that affect everyone.”

“To significantly reduce public inconvenience and suffering, meetings and rallies can be held at Suhrawardy Udyan instead of Shahbagh intersection. I would request everyone to use Suhrawardy Udyan instead of Shahbagh,” the adviser said.

Earlier in the day, while confirming the matter to The Business Standard, Bangladesh Police Academy Additional Inspector General of Police Masudur Rahman Bhuiyan had also said, “The decision has been taken purely on non-compliance of discipline. There is no political problem here.”

He said discharge letters were being issued and sent to each of the 252 trainee SIs of the 40th batch of external cadets.

The training of this batch of 804 SI trainees started on November 11, 2023 and is scheduled to end on November 4 this year.

Sources said the sacked trainee SIs faced various charges including not attending classes on time, not following orders from superiors, engaging in fights with each other, skipping training sessions and involving- se in “unethical” relationships.

Some sources even claimed that all the discharged trainees were involved with the Awami League and its various wings.

Topics discussed in today’s meeting include improving law and order across the country, preparations and security measures for Bishwa Ijtema, fight against terrorism and extremism, confiscation of arms and legal measures, the crackdown on criminals, regular press conferences by the heads of law enforcement agencies to provide regular updates to the public on their actions, and the prompt arrest of newly rescued major criminals if they engage in criminal activities.