Secretariat employee protest temporarily called off

The protest at the Secretariat, calling for the cancellation of the 'Government Service (Amendment) Ordinance, 2025', has been put on hold temporarily. The decision came on Tuesday (May 27) after four straight days of demonstrations.

Following a meeting with the protesters, Land Secretary ASM Saleh Ahmed said, "We will hold a discussion with the Cabinet Secretary tomorrow regarding the employees' demands. For this reason, we have requested the employees to pause their protest for now."

Meanwhile, Md. Badiul Kabir, President of the Bangladesh Secretariat Employees Unity Council, said, "We will keep our protest program on hold until the meeting with the Cabinet Secretary. However, if our demands are not fulfilled, we will resume the protest on Thursday."

On Tuesday afternoon, the protesting employees met with five secretaries, including Senior Secretary ASM Saleh Ahmed, at the Land Ministry’s conference room.

The protest began after the interim government’s advisory council approved a draft of the 'Government Service (Amendment) Ordinance, 2025' last Thursday, which proposes changes to the Government Job Act, 2018. Since then, employees from various ministries and departments have taken to the streets in opposition to the ordinance.

Despite the ongoing demonstrations, the government formally issued the 'Government Service (Amendment) Ordinance, 2025' on Sunday evening. In response, employees from different ministries and departments continued their protests inside the Secretariat for four straight days, with many leaving their offices to join the rallies and demonstrations.