Govt accepts resignation of two technocrat ministers, state minister

The three resigned on Nov 19, after the election schedule was announced

The government has accepted the resignation of two technocrat ministers and one state minister 10 days after they submitted them on orders from

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina as part of the process to reconstitute the cabinet ahead of the parliamentary elections.

The resignation of three advisers to the prime minister took effect as well, a cabinet official said on Wednesday.

On Nov 19, Science and Technology Minister Yeafesh Osman, Post and Telecommunications Minister Mustafa Jabbar and State Minister for Planning Shamsul Alam, who were all part of the cabinet as technocrats, tendered their resignations.

Mashiur Rahman, the prime minister’s economic affairs advisor, Tawfiq-e-Elahi Chowdhury, her power, energy and mineral resources advisor, and Gowher Rizvi, her international affairs advisor, also submitted their resignation letters on the same day.

They could still work until the process for accepting their resignations was complete, Cabinet Secretary Md Mahbub Hossain had said.

Following their resignations, the number of cabinet members in the Sheikh Hasina-led government stands at 44, including 23 ministers, 18 state ministers and three deputy ministers.

On Oct 31, Hasina said in a press briefing that she planned to head an election-time government as she had in 2018 before the 11th general election.

According to the election schedule, ballots will be cast on Jan 7. The deadline for nomination submissions is Nov 30, and the Election Commission will scrutinise the nomination papers from Dec 1 to Dec 4. The last day of nomination withdrawal is Dec 17.

After that, candidates can conduct their election campaigns from Dec 18 to Jan 5.