Admin service assoc condemns BSEC unrest, demands swift action

The Bangladesh Administrative Service Association, strongly condemning the unrest at the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC), has demanded the identification of the offenders and their swift prosecution.

In a statement, signed by the organisation's President and Rural Development and Cooperatives Division Secretary Md Nazrul Islam, and its Secretary General and Dhaka Divisional Commissioner Sharaf Uddin Ahmed Chowdhury, the condemnation was expressed.

The protest statement mentions that on 5 March, some unruly individuals confined the chairman and three commissioners of the BSEC for over four hours, demanding their resignation. They also subjected the employees present to mental and physical harassment, it states. Later, members of the armed forces and law enforcement agencies rescued them, mentions the statement.

The Bangladesh Administrative Service Association believes that such behaviour towards government employees is unlawful and a punishable offence. 

"Any legitimate demands or grievances of government employees should be presented in a systematic manner while remaining loyal to the government. If those involved in such offences are not brought to justice promptly, the normal functioning of the state will be disrupted," it states.

On Wednesday, a group of officials and employees confined the chairman and three commissioners to their offices for around four hours, but they were later escorted out by army personnel.

Meanwhile, the BSEC officials and employees on Thursday observed a pre-announced strike, continuing their agitation and demanding the resignation of the chairman and commissioners, leading to the closure of the office. 

On Thursday, the BSEC Chairman Khondoker Rashed Maqsood and three commissioners returned to the commission and vowed to take a firm stance, stating that the commission will not yield to injustice and will intensify investigations into irregularities in the country's capital market.