Online Report
In a move aimed at ensuring neutrality and transparency ahead of the upcoming general election, Home Adviser Lieutenant General (Retd.) Jahangir Alam Chowdhury has announced that all Superintendents of Police (SPs) and Officers-in-Charge (OCs) will be reassigned through a public lottery system.
The announcement came after a key meeting Wednesday at the Ministry of Home Affairs to finalize law enforcement preparedness for the 13th National Parliament elections.
“The Chief Adviser has already declared that election preparations are underway. Today’s meeting focused on concrete steps to ensure a fair and secure electoral process,” Jahangir Alam said.
Highlighting the influential role of SPs, OCs, DCs, and UNOs during elections, the adviser said past practices often allowed political pressure to influence their postings.
“To prevent favoritism, we’ve decided that SP and OC transfers will be determined by a public lottery — conducted in the presence of the media and relevant stakeholders,” he said.
The lottery will be held a few days before the official announcement of the election schedule. Once the schedule is released, authority over law enforcement deployments shifts to the Election Commission, which will retain the power to make further adjustments if needed.
While the lottery will cover all SPs and OCs nationwide, transfers of civil officials — including Deputy Commissioners (DCs) and Upazila Nirbahi Officers (UNOs) — fall under the Ministry of Public Administration.
“We are not controlling their transfers, but we hope they adopt the same transparent lottery system,” the adviser added.
OC reassignments will be conducted division-wise to ensure administrative coherence.
The move has been welcomed as a significant step toward depoliticizing law enforcement deployment and reinforcing institutional neutrality ahead of the crucial vote.
The interim government has repeatedly pledged to hold a credible, inclusive, and impartial election, with structural reforms forming the cornerstone of its roadmap.