Government secretaries will present the demands of protesting employees to the Cabinet Secretary on Wednesday, including the call to repeal the "Government Service (Amendment) Ordinance, 2025." In light of this development, employee leaders have decided to suspend their protest programs for one day.
On Tuesday afternoon, a meeting was held at the Secretariat between several secretaries, including the Senior Secretary of the Ministry of Land, A.S.M. Saleh Ahmed, and representatives of the protesting employee organizations.
Following the meeting, the Senior Secretary of the Land Ministry said that he and several other secretaries were assigned by the Cabinet Secretary earlier in the day to hold talks with the protesters.
They listened to the employees’ concerns and will convey them to the Cabinet Secretary at 10 a.m. tomorrow. In response, the employees have agreed not to carry out any protest activities for the day.
One of the protest leaders, the co-chairman of the Secretariat Officers and Employees Unity Forum and a president of a section of the Secretariat Officers and Employees Combined Council, Muhammad Nurul Islam, confirmed that no programs will be held tomorrow. Other protest leaders including Badiul Kabir and Nazrul Islam were also present during the announcement.
The protests began after the Advisory Council of the interim government approved a draft amendment to the Government Service Act, 2018, last Thursday. The proposed “Government Service (Amendment) Ordinance, 2025” has sparked opposition from employees across various ministries and departments.
Despite the protests, the ordinance was officially issued by the government on Sunday evening. Since then, employees from different ministries have been staging rallies and processions inside the Secretariat for four consecutive days, leaving their desks to join the movement in large numbers.
In response to the ongoing demonstrations, heavy security was deployed at the Secretariat on Tuesday. Members of specialized units such as SWAT, as well as personnel from the BGB and RAB, were stationed at the premises.
Entry to the Secretariat was restricted to officials and employees only. Journalists were barred from entering until the protest ended around 1 p.m., when access was finally granted.
