18 police officers including ex-DB chief Harun ur Rashid suspended

 
The government has suspended 18 police officers including additional police commissioner of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) and former chief of Detective Branch (DB) Mohammad Harun ur Rashid as they have been absent from duty without permission from the authorities concerned.

On Monday, a notification was issued by the Public Security Division of the Ministry of Home Affairs regarding this matter.

The remaining others suspended police officers are: Sanjit Kumar Roy, Joint Police Commissioner (Additional DIG), DMP, Rifat Rahman Shamim, former Joint Commissioner of Police, DMP, Currently Additional DIG, Office of Range DIG, Chattogram, Kazi Ashraful Azim, Superintendent of Police, Chittagong, Office of Range DIG, Chittagong, and Former Deputy Commissioner of Police, DMP, Dhaka, Hasan Arafat, Additional Superintendent of Police (Promoted to the Post of Supernumerary Superintendent of Police), Police Training Centre, Khulna, Syed Nurul Islam, former DIG, Dhaka Range and currently DIG, Bangladesh Police Academy, Sharda, Rajshahi, Md Asaduzzaman, former Superintendent of Police, Dhaka District and currently Superintendent of Police, Bangladesh Police Academy, Sharda, attached to Rajshahi, Mohammad Zaedul Alam, Additional DIG, APBn and Specialized Training Center, 

Khagrachhari, Mohammad Farid Uddin, Additional DIG, APBn (Hill Districts), Shyamal Kumar Mukherjee, Additional DIG, Range DIG's Office, attached to Rajshahi, Ayesha Siddika, Superintendent of Police (Promoted as Supernumerary Additional DIG), Office of Range DIG attached to Rajshahi, Rajan Kumar Das, Additional Superintendent of Police, 8 APBn, Ukhia, Cox's Bazar, Mirza Salauddin, Additional Superintendent of Police, Police Staff College, Dhaka, Md Habibullah Dalal, Assistant Superintendent of Police, Police Staff College, Dhaka, Rashedul Islam, Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police, BMP, Barisal, Md Moniruzzaman Additional DIG, Tourist Police, Dhaka, Md. Abu Maruf Hossain, former Deputy Commissioner of Police, RPMP, Rangpur, currently ATU, Dhaka, Ashrafuzzaman, DIG (Commandant).

The 18 police officers have been charged with the punishable offence of "Desertion" as per Rule 3(c) of the Government Servants (Discipline and Appeal) Rules, 2018 and are hereby suspended from service with effect from the date of their absence in duty as per Sub-rule (1) of Rule 12.

The suspended police officers will be entitled to subsistence allowance during the period of suspension.

The role of police stoked controversy during the July Uprising in 2024.

The July Revolution, also called the Student-People's Uprising, was a big protest for democracy in Bangladesh in 2024. It began in June when students, led by a group called Students Against Discrimination, protested against unfair job quotas in government jobs. This happened after the Supreme Court of Bangladesh canceled the old rules from 2018. At first, the protests were peaceful, but in late July, the government used force against the protesters, killing many of them. This tragic event is known as the July Massacre.

By August, the protests grew into a huge movement where people stopped cooperating with the government. This forced the Prime Minister at the time, Sheikh Hasina, to flee the country and escape to India. When she left, it caused a big problem with the country's leadership. Eventually, an interim (temporary) government was set up, led by Muhammad Yunus, an economist from Bangladesh who won a Nobel Peace Prize. He became the chief adviser to help run things.

After the Awami League won the 2008 elections, they removed the caretaker government system. They then won three more elections in a row (2014, 2018, and 2024). However, these elections were widely accused of being rigged. Most political parties in Bangladesh boycotted the 2014 and 2024 elections, though not the 2018 one. During this period, the government reportedly arrested and tortured opponents, pushing opposition leaders out of politics by convicting them in different cases. The government also tightly controlled media and free speech, using laws like the Digital Security Act. 

Since 2009, Sheikh Hasina's Awami League has struggled to create jobs as promised. Although public sector jobs grew with better salaries, these positions were often given based on political connections. 

Reports say the government used police and Awami League supporters-including its student wing, the Chhatra League-to violently suppress protests, even non-political ones. The Chhatra League has been accused of violent crackdowns at universities and other institutions. Over these years, Awami League leaders faced accusations of corruption, money laundering, banking fraud, and mishandling financial reserves. These problems contributed to higher living costs and public anger.