The advisory council of the interim government on Thursday approved amendments to the Government Service (Amendment) Ordinance 2025, replacing ‘dismissal or termination’ as the maximum penalty for proven misconduct with ‘mandatory retirement’ for government employees.
The government on May 25 promulgated the ordinance by amending the Government Service Act, 2018, introducing stricter disciplinary measures. The ordinance sparked protests by government employees at the secretariat in the capital Dhaka and the other places in the country.
Energy adviser Muhammad Fouzul Kabir Khan told ¶¶̉ơ¾«Æ·, ‘The provision for dismissal has been abolished and replaced with mandatory retirement, with appeal rights introduced through the amendment.’
‘We have abolished the provision of dismissal as family of any employee is not deprived of retirement benefits due to punishment of any employee,’ he said.
The amendments to the ordinance were approved at a meeting of the advisory council chaired by chief adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus at his Tejgaon office in the capital.
The amended ordinance will be promulgated by the president after the law ministry’s vetting next week, according to officials.
The advisory council also approved granting the government employees the right to appeal against disciplinary actions in the amendment after a month-long movement by government employees at the secretariat and other places.
The government employees were demanding the repeal of the ordinance that allowed dismissal of public servants for ‘administrative disruptions’ within 14 days and without departmental proceedings.
Before the amendments to the ordinance, disciplinary action could be taken based solely on a notice and the employee’s response, with no provision for appeal.
The ordinance triggered widespread protests among government employees, particularly in the secretariat, leading to protests, work stoppages, and the submission of memorandums to several advisers demanding its repeal.
Amid the protest, the Cabinet Division formed a three-member committee headed by law adviser Asif Nazrul, with energy adviser Fauzul Kabir Khan and Cabinet Division secretary Sheikh Abdur Rashid as members.
The committee held meeting with leaders of the protesting government employees and recommended abolishing some controversial clauses and adding new provisions in the ordinance.
Nazrul Islam, co-secretary general of the Bangladesh Secretariat Employees Unity Forum, told ¶¶̉ơ¾«Æ·, ‘We have come to know that the advisory council has decided to further amend the ordinance. If it is revised as per our proposals, we will have no objections.’
According to the revised ordinance, if misconduct is proven, an employee will be mandatorily retired regardless of their remaining years of service and will receive financial benefits determined by the government based on their time of service.
It will also be mandatory to obtain the opinion of the Public Service Commission before enforcing mandatory retirement.
Changes have also been made to the structure of the investigation committee. Instead of a single officer conducting the investigation, a three-member committee, including at least one female officer, will now deal with inquiries.
The report must be submitted within 14 days of receipt of the order of investigation and failure to submit the report within the stipulated time will be considered as incompetence of the members of the investigation committee and the incompetence will be recorded in the ACR.
If necessary, disciplinary action can be taken against the members of the committee. If a government employee is given a penalty, they can appeal against the order to the president within 30 working days of the receipt of the order of the penalty.
The revised ordinance still allows action against employees absent without reasonable cause, but clarifies that immediate disciplinary measures cannot be taken if an employee is absent due to urgent personal matters without notifying their superior, an official said.