Promotion of retired joint secy cancelled

Staff Reporter

After reporting at The New Nation titled on `Promotion row raises vetting questions’ published on Sunday, the government has cancelled the promotion of a retired officer to the rank of Joint Secretary.
The government has cancelled the promotion of the official who was elevated to the rank of Joint Secretary after retirement. A new notification regarding this matter was issued by the Ministry of Public Administration on Saturday (July 11).

It states that the portion of the order pertaining to Mainul Haque Bhuiyan—a Deputy Secretary in the Information and Communication Technology Division who was promoted to the rank of Joint Secretary last Thursday—has been cancelled.

The decision to revoke the official’s promotion has already been communicated to the relevant departments, including the Cabinet Division, the Prime Minister’s Office, and the Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General. Officials from the Ministry

of Public Administration stated that there is no provision to implement a promotion if the individual is no longer in service. Consequently, the promotion granted after retirement was reconsidered and subsequently cancelled.

Last Thursday, 179 officials were promoted from Deputy Secretary to Joint Secretary. Mainul Haque was listed at number 53 on that list.

The official retired from service following a notification issued by the Ministry of Public Administration on June 30. Nine days later, his name was included in a separate notification promoting 179 officials to the rank of Joint Secretary. Mainul Haque was sent into retirement in accordance with the Government Service Act upon reaching the age of 59.

A special report with a byline by Mohammad Abdul Wadud, detailing the incident where the same individual was sent into retirement and subsequently granted a promotion after retiring, was published on the front page of *The New Nation* on Sunday.

Consequently, widespread discussion and criticism ensued within administrative circles. As a result, the government officially revoked the notification on Sunday.