Jasim going on leave, Nazrul to take charges as acting secretary

A major administrative reshuffle has been seen again in the Foreign Ministry of Bangladesh. Foreign Secretary Md. Jasim Uddin is going on leave and in his absence, Secretary (East) Md. Nazrul Islam is set to take charge as acting Foreign Secretary. The matter is now awaiting approval from the government's policy-making level.

On Tuesday afternoon, several senior officials of the Foreign Ministry confirmed the matter to Views Bangladesh on condition of anonymity.

According to reliable sources, Md. Jasim Uddin is not just going on a short leave - it may be part of a long-term leave, as a result of which the formal decision to remove him from the post of Foreign Secretary may take effect.

According to sources, after the leave, he likely to get appointed as an ambassador to an important country in North America.

Sources in the Foreign Ministry also learned that although the matter of the leave is largely confirmed, the formal final announcement has not yet been made. However, communication is ongoing with the Chief adviser's Office and the Advisory Council on the matter.

Meanwhile, the matter of giving the responsibility of acting secretary to Md. Nazrul Islam is also under process. Nazrul Islam has been in an important position in the Foreign Ministry for a long time and is said to be trusted at the policy-making level.

Jasim Uddin assumed charge as Foreign Secretary in September 2024. He is an officer of the 13th batch of the BCS (Foreign Affairs) cadre. According to his service tenure, he is scheduled to go on post-retirement leave (PRL) in December 2026. But the initiative to remove him from the post before then is not only unprecedented, but very rare.

There have been very few incidents in the diplomatic history of Bangladesh where a Foreign Secretary has been removed within less than a year of his appointment. Such incidents have happened only three times in the last five decades.

In 1972, Foreign Secretary Syed Anwarul Karim was removed within six months of his appointment. In 1989, AKH Morshed was removed after four months. In 2001, Syed Moazzem Ali was removed after just five months. In this context, Jasim Uddin's removal is going to be the fourth such event.

Moreover, this is the second initiative to reshuffle the post of Foreign Secretary since the current interim government took office in August last year. For the first time, they removed Masud Bin Momen in September 2023 and appointed Md. Jasim Uddin as Foreign Secretary.

Analysts say that it is not yet clear whether the change in the Foreign Secretary is political considerations or administrative strategy. However, as part of preparations for the upcoming elections, the decision to reshuffle may have been taken to maintain internal balance in the Foreign Ministry and ensure a combination of experience.

Sources claim that after the leave, Jasim Uddin may be appointed as Bangladesh's ambassador to an important country in North America.
Although the matter has not been officially announced yet, senior officials of the ministry say that this decision has almost reached the final stage. According to the internal rules of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, it is not new for secretary-level officials to be posted as ambassadors abroad before retirement. Such postings are frequent, especially for those who have diplomatic skills, state needs and are trusted by the government.

Currently, there are plans to change the posts of ambassadors in some of Bangladesh's major diplomatic missions in North America.

Important diplomatic activities are carried out in Bangladesh's missions in the United States, Canada and Mexico. Especially in the United States, the post of ambassador carries great strategic and political importance.