Half of Army Personnel Withdrawn from Law and Order Duties

The government has decided to withdraw 50 percent of Bangladesh Army personnel currently deployed to maintain law and order across the country. The decision was made on Tuesday during a meeting of the Core Committee on Law and Order held at the Ministry of Home Affairs in the Secretariat.

According to the meeting, half of the army members will be temporarily withdrawn to allow them rest and election-time training. The decision will take effect on Wednesday. After their rest and training, they will be redeployed, and the remaining personnel will then be withdrawn. Two senior government officials present at the meeting confirmed the information to the media.

A source stated that another purpose of the withdrawal is to observe the field situation after the army is pulled back — to assess how the public reacts and whether the law and order situation remains stable. The prolonged deployment of the army has reportedly caused various complications. However, the army will remain deployed during the upcoming 13th National Parliamentary Election.

Following the student–public uprising that led to the fall of the Awami League government, the armed forces (army, navy, and air force) were granted the powers of special executive magistrates on September 17 last year to manage the emerging law and order situation.

Khaborwala/TSN