SPs of 64 districts finalised through lottery

The government has finalised the appointment of superintendents of police (SPs) for all 64 districts through a lottery to ensure neutral policing during the upcoming 13th national parliamentary election. 

The selection was conducted yesterday morning (24 November) at the Chief Adviser's Office in the presence of top officials from the home ministry, the inspector general of police, and representatives from the Chief Adviser's Office.

Although officials from the Press Wing of the Chief Adviser's Office declined to comment officially, senior officials from the home ministry and Police Headquarters confirmed the development to The Business Standard in the evening.

Dhaka Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sheikh Mohammad Sajjat Ali, who attended the lottery, said the government aimed to ensure fair elections by appointing neutral officers in every district. "To avoid any controversy regarding postings, the SPs were chosen through a transparent lottery as per high-level directives," he said.

According to sources, officers who had previously served as SPs were excluded at the initial stage. A "fit list" was then prepared after scrutinising officials from the 25th, 27th, and 28th batches of the police cadre. The final 64 SPs were selected from this list and will be posted to districts gradually.

Sources at the home ministry and Police Headquarters said the 64 districts were categorised into three groups — A, B, and C — based on district-level importance such as size, administrative significance, and geographical considerations. The newly selected SPs were then assigned to districts within these three categories through a second round of lottery.

Sources added that under the new arrangement, the SPs currently posted in 50 districts will remain in service but will be transferred to different districts. Fourteen newly appointed SPs have also been included in the list, while SPs from 14 districts have been withdrawn.

Among the newly appointed officers, four are from the 25th BCS batch and the remaining ten from the 27th batch, sources said.

Home ministry and Police Headquarters officials earlier said that following the chief adviser's instructions, a committee was given the list of eligible officers, and it was decided that district-wise postings would be determined by lottery. This also led to the suspension of joining orders for newly appointed SPs in six districts last week, as they too were included in the lottery system.

Police Headquarters sources further said the next phase will involve appointing officers-in-charge (OCs) to police stations through a similar lottery. Names of honest, competent, and neutral inspectors have already been collected from unit chiefs, and a "fit list" has been prepared. At the same time, initiatives have begun to clear the long-pending promotion backlog of senior officers.

On 22 November, a two-hour meeting at the home ministry discussed policies regarding police recruitment and transfers during the election period. Yesterday's SP selection through the lottery followed those discussions.

A senior Police Headquarters official, requesting anonymity, said the lottery method was introduced to avoid any controversy surrounding election-time policing.

"This will help ensure the deployment of neutral officers at the field level," the official said.