Officers of 25 cadres to observe pen-down strike from Tuesday

Officers from 25 different civil service cadres will begin a pen-down strike on Tuesday, protesting alleged discrimination, temporary suspensions, and departmental actions taken against them by the administration cadre.

The strike, scheduled from 9 AM to 12 noon on May 27 and 28, demands the establishment of a ministry based on professional merit, the removal of the DS pool quota, and equal treatment for all cadres. Emergency services, including hospital emergency departments, will be exempted from the strike.

The Inter-Cadre Discrimination Elimination Council, led by coordinator Mohammad Omar Faruq Dewan, stated that 12 members of these cadres were temporarily suspended recently for social media activity. Despite government assurances, the issues remain unresolved, and disciplinary proceedings continue for some, while officers from the administration cadre face no similar consequences.

The council also criticized the Public Administration Reform Commission's recent recommendation to allocate 50% of assistant secretary pool positions exclusively to the administration cadre, with the remaining 50% for other cadres through competitive exams. The decision was made without consulting the council and has sparked widespread protests.

Previous demonstrations include a human chain at Dhaka’s Shaheed Minar on May 20, a full-day strike on March 2, and nationwide pen-down strikes and human chains last December.