By IANS,
Dhaka: Bangladesh Prime Minister and Awami League chief Sheikh Hasina Friday removed four “reformists” from the party’s presidium and inducted six new ministers in the government as part of sweeping changes.
‘Reformists’ are those who attempted intra-party reforms while Hasina was in jail on graft charges during 2007-08 and whose loyalty to her was doubtful, media reports said.
The four are Abdur Razzak, currently heading a parliamentary delegation visiting India, Amir Hossain Amu, Tofael Ahmed and Suranjit Sengupta – all associates of Hasina’s father, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, during the freedom movement in 1971.
Part of the generational change, they have now been included on the advisory panel of the party, Star Online said.
Hasina added a cabinet minister and five state ministers to her team that has a majority of first-term lawmakers with little or no prior ministerial experience.
Shahjahan Khan is the new cabinet minister in charge of Shipping.
Brig Gen (retd) Enamul Haque, Shirin Sharmin Chowdhury, Promod Mankin, Mahbubur Rahman and Captain (retd) Mujibur Rahman Fakir are the new state ministers.
The council of ministers now has 25 ministers and 18 state ministers.
Hasina was re-elected Awami League president for the seventh time last week and changes in the party’s hierarchy and the government were in the offing.
Hasina and her political allies swept the polls last December winning a two-thirds majority. The government took office on Jan 6 this year.