Police to rejoin today as govt promises independent commission 

Police members, who have been observing a work abstention to push home their 11-point demand, will rejoin work from today, the main coordinator of the Anti-Discrimination Central Coordination Committee of Bangladesh Police, Inspector Zahidul Islam, said yesterday (11 August).

"The adviser to the Ministry of Home Affairs has promised to establish an independent police commission. On this assurance, we will perform symbolic duties tonight [ Sunday night] and resume full operations starting tomorrow [Monday]," he added.

He further said, "In light of the situation in Bangladesh following the student movement, we have discussed the 11-point demand with our senior officials. We had ceased working to press our demands."

Currently, the home ministry takes care of key issues like transfer and promotion within the force. Once formed, the commission will oversee these affairs, sources say. 

Meanwhile, some 599 out of 639 police stations across the country resumed operations on a small scale as of yesterday with the return to duty of 30% of the force, according to sources within the police headquarters.

They report that 97 out of 110 metropolitan police stations and 502 out of 529 district police stations have resumed operations. For security reasons, army personnel were present at all these police stations.

Sources say that many policemen are still absent, and some are also injured.

According to them, police personnel have begun working with rented chairs and tables in the buildings that were burned and vandalised during the recent violence.

However, the police headquarters has initiated repairs for the police stations that were attacked and damaged by arson and vandalism.

Besides, students were seen cleaning some police stations yesterday.

Earlier in the day, adviser to the Ministry of Home Affairs, Brigadier General (Retd) Sakhawat Hossain, said yesterday that the government will consider any police personnel who do not report for duty by the upcoming Thursday as unwilling to continue working.

"There is no need for anyone to be afraid. No innocent person will be harmed in any way," he added.

Addressing the public, he said, "Do not assault the police. You surely understand the necessity of the police."

According to sources, the Police Headquarters and Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) offices reopened on 8 August, but there was no police presence in either office that day.

Meanwhile, newly appointed IGP Md Mainul Islam last Wednesday gave policemen a 24-hour deadline to return to their respective workplaces after assuming his role. Consequently, the presence of police personnel in stations and other workplaces gradually increased.

Yesterday, traffic police members were also seen performing their duties at some locations in the capital.

They will soon resume operations throughout the entire city, according to the IGP.

Around 400 police stations were attacked, vandalised, and set on fire during the clashes and violence during the quota reform protests. In these incidents, as many as 42 police members were killed, and many others were injured, say sources in the force.

After the fall of the Hasina government on 5 August due to mass protests, for the first time in the country's history, all police stations were closed for at least four days.