At least 252 trainee sub-inspectors who were receiving basic training at Bangladesh Police Academy at Sardah in Rajshahi under the 40th outside cadet batch have been discharged allegedly for breaching discipline.
They were discharged on Monday, only 10 days before their graduation ceremony scheduled to be held on October 31, officials said.
鈥楾he 252 trainee SIs have been discharged from the academy for breaching the disciplinary code of conduct,鈥� the academy principal and additional inspector general of police Md Masudur Rahman Bhuiyan said.
The discharged trainee sub-inspectors are among the 801 trainee sub-inspectors who were receiving basic training under the 40th outside cadet batch.
The academy principal said that the decision was taken after reviewing the discharged one鈥檚 files at the last stage of the training.
The decision to discharge 252 trainee sub-inspectors came only four days after Bangladesh Nationalist Party聽 standing committee member Salahuddin Ahmed鈥檚 October 17 press conference where he demanded immediate cancellation of the appointment of over 800 sub-inspectors and 67 assistant superintendents of police, who were appointed before the fall of the Sheikh Hasina regime and had been receiving basic training at the police academy.
Salahuddin, addressing the press conference at the BNP chairperson鈥檚 office at the capital鈥檚 Gulshan, had alleged that among these appointed ones, 200 were from Gopalganj and 403 were members of 鈥榯errorist organisation鈥� Chhatra League, the student wing of the Awami League, which was involved in the killing of students during the anti-discrimination student movement.
Two days after Salahuddin鈥檚 press conference, the authorities postponed the graduation ceremony of the apprentice ASPs of the 40th Bangladesh Civil Service on Saturday night, hours before it was scheduled to be held at the academy on Sunday morning, citing 鈥榰navoidable reasons.鈥�
When asked about BNP鈥檚 demand to cancel the appointment of apprentice ASPs and SIs, the academy principal, Md Masudur Rahman Bhuiyan, denied making any comment on political issues.
While taking to reporters after holding the third meeting of the advisers鈥� committee on law and order at the secretariat on Tuesday, home adviser retired Lieutenant General Jahangir Alam Chowdhury said that the 252 trainee sub-inspectors were discharged for breaching discipline during their training period, and not for political reasons.
Several trainee sub-inspectors told 抖阴精品 that they boycotted their breakfast during a break in a practice session of the passing out ceremony parade on October 1 as the authorities served lower quality foods for them than that for the ASPs.
Following the incident, the authorities at the academy separated 257 trainee sub-inspectors from the parade and issued them show-cause notices on October 8 alleging that they had breached discipline by not taking breakfast, creating a chaotic environment on the parade ground, and leaving the training grounds for their barracks without permission.
They said that the academy authorities had also prepared a list of another 69 trainee sub-inspectors and they were passing their days in anxiety.
Wishing anonymity, two trainee sub-inspectors who were discharged told 抖阴精品 that they were sent home on a compulsory vacation from October 19 to October 30 all of a sudden.
They said that the reason cited in the letters of their discharge was a breach of discipline over taking breakfast.
鈥業 never thought I would be discharged only for not taking breakfast. Those who were admitted to the academy hospital and went to buy vegetables were also discharged on the same ground,鈥� one of them said.
