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Employees of the Bangladesh Secretariat staged a protest within the Secretariat premises on Saturday, demanding the immediate withdrawal of the draft “Public Service (Amendment) Ordinance, 2025”. The demonstration was organized by the Bangladesh Secretariat Officers and Employees Unified Council, which denounced the draft ordinance as “repressive” and labeled it a “black law.”
The protest followed the interim government’s approval of the draft ordinance on Thursday during a meeting of the Advisory Council. The proposed legislation aims to amend the ‘Public Service Act, 2018’.
Employee representatives have raised strong objections to several new provisions in the draft, alleging that they are derived from repressive rules dating back more than four decades. They argue that these additions would enable authorities to impose severe penalties—including termination of service—on public servants more easily and with limited due process.
Protesters contend that the proposed ordinance contradicts the spirit of the Constitution and poses a threat to job security in the public sector. They have called for the draft to be reconsidered and withdrawn without delay.
During Saturday’s demonstration, a large number of Secretariat employees gathered and marched inside the Secretariat compound in Dhaka, chanting slogans against the ordinance.
Md Badiul Kabir, President of the Secretariat Officers and Employees Unified Council, stated, “The existing ‘Public Service Act, 2018’ already contains comprehensive codes of conduct and disciplinary procedures. Adding repressive provisions through an ordinance is both unnecessary and unacceptable. This is a black law, and we demand its immediate withdrawal.”
The protest underscores growing concern among public sector employees that the proposed amendments could erode their legal protections and pave the way for arbitrary disciplinary measures. The council has pledged to continue its movement until the ordinance is formally scrapped.
