Prime Minister of Bangladesh

The prime minister of Bangladesh (Bengali: বাংলাদেশের

Prime Minister of The
প্রধানমন্ত্রী, romanised: Bangladesher Prodhanmontri), officially
People's Republic of
prime minister of the People's Republic of Bangladesh
Bangladesh
(Bengali: গণপ্রজাতন্ত্রী বাংলাদেশের প্রধানমন্ত্রী, romanised:
গণপ্রজাতন্ত্রী বাংলাদেশের
Gonoprojatantri Bangladesh Shorkarer Prodhanmontri), is the chief
প্রধানমন্ত্রী
executive of the government of Bangladesh. The prime minister
and the cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and
actions to the Parliament, to their political party and ultimately to
the electorate. The prime minister is ceremonially appointed by the
president of Bangladesh.

The position was taken over by the military during the years of
1975–78, 1982–86 and 1990–91 due to imposed martial law. In
Seal of the prime minister of
each of these periods, the national government leadership was in
Bangladesh
control of the military with the executive authority of the president
and the prime minister. During the period between 1996 and 2008,
The chief adviser of the caretaker government of the People's
Republic of Bangladesh exercised authority as per the constitution
as the Head of government for 90 days during transition between
one elected government to another. The chief adviser headed an
Standard of the prime minister of
Advisory Committee comprising ten Advisers. With powers
Bangladesh
roughly equivalent to those of the prime minister of an elected
government, his executive power was constrained with certain Incumbent
constitutional limitations. The system was scrapped in 2011 by Vacant
15th amendment of constitution to allow political government to since 5 August 2024
conduct any General Election in future. Government of Bangladesh

Sheikh Hasina was the longest serving prime minister in the Prime Minister's Office
country's history, until her resignation on 5 August 2024. Cabinet Division
Style The Honourable
(formal)
Appointment Prime Minister
(informal)
According to the Constitution, the prime minister is appointed by
the President based upon the result of the electorates choice in His Excellency
parliamentary general election held by the Election Commission. (diplomatic)
The Prime Minister will be the leader of the majority party (or Type Head of
coalition) in the Jatiya Sangsad and must have the confidence of Government
the Jatiya Sangsad to govern. The cabinet is composed of ministers Status Leader of the
selected by the prime minister and appointed by the President. At Executive
least 90% of the ministers must be MPs. The other 10% may be
non-MP experts or "technocrats" who are not otherwise Member of Cabinet
disqualified from being elected MPs. According to the constitution,
Parliament
the president can dissolve Parliament upon the written request of
Armed Forces
the prime minister. The appointments of the Prime Minister and
Division
other Ministers of state and deputy Ministers, shall be made by the
President: Provided that not less the nine tenths of their number Planning
shall be appointed from among members of parliament and not Commission
more than one tenth of their number may be chosen from among Intelligence
persons qualified for election as members of parliament. Community
Residence Ganabhaban,
The Prime Minister is appointed and sworn in by the President: Dhaka

Bangla Seat Primary: Old

Sangsad Bhaban,
" আমি, (নাম), সশ্রদ্ধচিত্তে শপথ (বা দৃঢ়ভাবে ঘোষণা) করিতেছি যে, Tejgaon, Dhaka
আমি আইন-অনুযায়ী সরকারের প্রধানমন্ত্রী (কিংবা ক্ষেত্রমত মন্ত্রী, Secondary:
প্রতি-মন্ত্রী, বা উপমন্ত্রী)-পদের কর্ত ব্য বিশ্বস্ততার সহিত পালন করিব: Bangladesh
আমি বাংলাদেশের প্রতি অকৃ ত্রিম বিশ্বাস ও আনুগত্য পোষণ করিব; Secretariat, Dhaka
আমি সংবিধানের রক্ষণ, সমর্থন ও নিরাপত্তাবিধান করিব; এবং Appointer President of
আমি ভীতি বা অনুগ্রহ, অনুরাগ বা বিরাগের বশবর্তী না হইয়া Bangladesh by
সকলের প্রতি আইন-অনুযায়ী যথাবিহীত আচরণ করিব।" convention, based
on appointee's
English
ability to command
In English, "I, (name) do swear with honor (or solemnly affirm) the confidence of
that I, according to the laws, shall faithfully discharge the functions the Jatiya Sangsad
of the office of the Prime Minister (or Minister or State Minister or Term length At the pleasure of
Sub-minister, as the circumstances allow). I shall possess pure faith the President
and obedience to Bangladesh. I shall preserve, support and secure Jatiya Sangsad
the constitution and I shall deal with all with equity as suggested by term is 5 years
laws, without being affected by fear or mercy, love or hatred." unless dissolved
sooner
No term limits
Duties of the office Constituting Constitution of
instrument Bangladesh
The office of the Prime Minister is located at Tejgaon in Dhaka
Inaugural Tajuddin Ahmed
city. It is considered a ministry of the government and among other holder
duties, provides clerical, security, and other support to the prime
Formation 17 April 1971
minister, governs intelligence affairs, NGOs, and arranges protocol
and ceremonies. Salary ৳ 115,000 Monthly
(US$ 1,352)
Some specific ministries/department are not allocated to anyone in ৳ 1,380,000
the cabinet but the prime minister themself. The prime minister is annually
usually always in charge/head of: [1]
(US$ 16,220)
Website pmo.gov.bd (http://
Leader of the House (responsible for managing and
scheduling Government business in the Sangsad) pmo.gov.bd)

Cabinet Division
 Head of the Armed Forces Division and Minister of Defence
Minister of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources
Chairperson of the Planning Commission
Bangladeshi intelligence community

History and timeline

Bangladesh origins lie in Bengal, a province of the British India that included present-day West Bengal.
Between 1937 and 1947 it was intermittently governed by a popularly elected ministry, whose head is often
designated the Premier of Bengal. In 1947, Bengal province was partitioned into the Indian state of West
Bengal and East Pakistan. All three erstwhile Bengal premiers—A. K. Fazlul Huq, Khawaja Nazimuddin
and H. S. Suhrawardy—became Pakistani citizens; the latter two went on to become Prime Ministers of
Pakistan in the 1950s.

East Pakistan's history from 1947 to 1971 was marked by political instability and economic difficulties. The
nascent democratic institutions foundered in the face of military intervention in 1958, and the government
imposed martial law between 1958 and 1962, and again between 1969 and 1971. Between 1947 and 1971
it was intermittently governed by Governors and Chief Minister of East Pakistan.

Independence and first parliamentary era (1971–1975)

The modern office of Prime Minister was established following the declaration of independence of East
Pakistan with the Provisional Government of Bangladesh on 17 April 1971, of which Tajuddin Ahmad
became the first Prime Minister of Bangladesh. Since the adoption of the current Constitution of
Bangladesh in 1972 the formal title of the office is The Prime Minister of the People's Republic of
Bangladesh.

Military coups and presidential regimes (1975–1991)

From 1975 to 1991, the Prime Minister was appointed by the President while the President had executive
power.

Return of parliamentary government (1991–present)

In September 1991, the electorate approved changes to the constitution, formally creating a parliamentary
system and returning governing power to the office of the prime minister, as in Bangladesh's original
constitution. In October 1991, members of parliament elected a new head of state, President Abdur Rahman
Biswas.[2]

Premiership of Khaleda Zia (1991–1996, 2001–2006)

Khaleda Zia served as Prime Minister of Bangladesh twice from 1991 to 1996 and from 2001 to 2006.
Once in power, Khaleda Zia's government made substantial changes in education policy, introducing free
education for girls up to the 10th grade, a stipend for female students, and food for education programme
funds. It also made highest budgetary allocation in the education sector.
She became Prime Minister for the second consecutive term after the BNP had a landslide victory on 15
February 1996 general election to the sixth Jatiya Sangsad which is widely believed to be rigged voting
after bribeing the election commissioner. The election was, however, boycotted by all other major parties
who were demanding that the elections be held under a neutral caretaker government, following allegations
of rigging in a by-election held in 1994. Turnout was estimated at around 5%, though the government at the
time claimed it to be much higher. On 12 June 1996 polls, BNP lost to Hasina's Awami League but
emerged as the largest opposition party in the country's parliamentary history with 116 seats.

Aiming to return to power, the BNP formed a four-party alliance on 6 January 1999 with its former political
opinion Jatiya Party, and the Islamic party of Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh and the Islami Oikya Jot and
launched several agitation programmes against the ruling Awami League. In the 2001 general elections
BNP won the election with a two-thirds majority of seats in parliament and 46% of the vote (compared to
the principal opposition party's 40%) and Khaleda Zia was once again sworn in as the Prime Minister of
Bangladesh.

In 2008 election, they faced a landslide defeat. Khaleda led four-party alliance won only 32 seats and
emerged as the smallest opposition party in the country's parliamentary history. They won only 32% of the
total vote where their main rival Awami League won more than 50% of the total vote.

In the Tenth Jatiyo Sangsad election of 2014, the BNP along with its 18 party alliance boycotted and
violently protested the election to no avail.

2007 political crisis and caretaker government

The scheduled 22 January 2007 elections were marred by controversy. The Awami League and its allies
protested, saying that the elections would not be fair because of alleged bias by the caretaker government in
favour of Khaleda Zia and the BNP. Hasina demanded that the head of the caretaker government, President
Iajuddin Ahmed, step down from that position, and on 3 January 2007, she announced that the Awami
League and its allies would boycott the elections.[3] Later in the month, the military led by Army Chief
General Moinuddin Ahmed intervened and President Iajuddin Ahmed was asked to resign as the chief
advisor. He was also made to declare a state of emergency. A new military-controlled Caretaker government
was formed with Dr. Fakhruddin Ahmed as the Chief Adviser. The scheduled parliamentary election was
postponed.

On 12 January 2007, President Iajuddin Ahmed swore in Fakhruddin Ahmed as the Chief Adviser to the
Interim Caretaker Government. For a country widely perceived as one of the world's most corrupt, the most
dramatic aspect of Fakhruddin Ahmed's rule is his antigraft campaign against the establishment. So far,
more than 160 senior politicians, top civil servants and security officials have been arrested on suspicion of
graft and other economic crimes.[4] The roundup has netted former ministers from the two main political
parties, including former prime ministers Khaleda Zia and Sheikh Hasina and former adviser Fazlul Haque.

On May 11, 2017, the Office of Bangladesh Prime Minister Hasina Wazed announced that then US
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called her office in March 2011 to demand that Dr. Muhammed Yunus, a
2006 Nobel Peace prize winner, be restored to his role as chairman of microcredit bank, Grameen Bank.
The bank's nonprofit Grameen America, which Yunus chairs, has given between $100,000 and $250,000 to
the Clinton Global Initiative. Grameen Research, which is chaired by Yunus, has donated between $25,000
and $50,000, according to the Clinton Foundation website.[5][6]

Premiership of Sheikh Hasina (1996–2001, 2009–2024)

Sheikh Hasina lost to Khaleda Zia in 1991 parliamentary election after managing to win 88 seats and her
party sat in opposition benches. She boycotted the 1996 February 15 elections giving Khaleda Zia a default
victory.

Awami League won 146 seats in the 1996 June 12 parliamentary elections. The support of the Jatiya Party
and a few independent candidates were enough for the 150 or more seats needed for the required majority.
Hasina took the oath as the prime minister of Bangladesh. She vowed to create a Government of National
Unity. Though some smaller parties and a few individuals from BNP did join the government, the distance
between the main two political parties as well as their leaders remained as large as ever.

Awami League was defeated in the 2001 Parliament election. It won only 62 seats in the Parliament, while
the Four-Party Alliance led by the Bangladesh Nationalist Party won more than 200 seats, giving them a
two-thirds majority in the Parliament. Hasina herself was defeated from a constituency in Rangpur, which
happened to contain her husband's hometown, but won from three other seats. Sheikh Hasina and the
Awami League rejected the results, claiming that the election was rigged with the help of the President and
the Caretaker government. However, the international community was largely satisfied with the elections
and the Four-Party Alliance went on to form the government.

In the December 2008 election, Sheikh Hasina led Awami league got a landslide victory winning 230 seats,
which gave them the two-thirds majority in the parliament. She made an alliance with JP and left fronts and
her grand alliance won 252 seats in the parliament. Sheikh Hasina took oath as Prime Minister on 6 January
2009. She was the prime minister of Bangladesh after winning a walkover 5 January 2014 election when
Khaleda Zia's BNP boycotted the general election.

Sheikh Hasina secured a fourth term as prime minister after winning the 2018 general election. Hasina has
become the longest serving Prime Minister of Bangladesh since independence.

After nationwide protests against the Awami League government, on 5 August 2024, Sheikh Hasina was
forced to resign and flee from Bangladesh[7][8][9] to India.[10]

Compensation and benefits

According to The Prime Minister's (Remuneration and Privilege) (Amendment) Bill, 2016, the salary of the
prime minister of Bangladesh is one lakh 15 thousand Taka per month. Besides, they get a monthly house
rent of one lakh Taka and a daily allowance of three thousand Taka.[11]

See also
List of prime ministers of Bangladesh
President of Bangladesh
 Prime Minister of Bengal
Deputy Prime Minister of Bangladesh
Foreign Minister of Bangladesh
Chief Adviser
Politics of Bangladesh
Constitution of Bangladesh

References
1. Correspondent, Parliament; bdnews24.com. "Bangladesh raises president, prime minister's
pay, perks" (https://bdnews24.com/bangladesh/2016/05/05/bangladesh-raises-president-pri
me-ministers-pay-perks). bdnews24.com. Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/2019092102
3118/https://bdnews24.com/bangladesh/2016/05/05/bangladesh-raises-president-prime-mini
sters-pay-perks) from the original on 21 September 2019. Retrieved 28 October 2019.
2. "Background Note: Bangladesh" (https://web.archive.org/web/20170402124354/http://dosfa
n.lib.uic.edu/ERC/bgnotes/sa/bangladesh9201.html). US Department of State. 15 December
1992. Archived from the original (http://dosfan.lib.uic.edu/ERC/bgnotes/sa/bangladesh9201.
html) on 2 April 2017. Retrieved 5 April 2008 – via University of Illinois at Chicago.
3. Habib, Haroon (4 January 2007). "Polls won't be fair: Hasina" (https://web.archive.org/web/2
0070107193852/http://www.hindu.com/2007/01/04/stories/2007010405671400.htm). The
Hindu. Archived from the original (http://www.hindu.com/2007/01/04/stories/2007010405671
400.htm) on 7 January 2007.
4. Abdullah, Abir (22 March 2007). "Corruption has emerged as a great threat" (https://web.arch
ive.org/web/20130824210804/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1601618,0
0.html). Time. Archived from the original (http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1
601618,00.html) on 24 August 2013. Retrieved 12 April 2008.
5. Nation, Fox (31 July 2017). "Circa: Prime Minister of Bangladesh Says Clinton Personally
Pressured Her to Help Donor" (http://nation.foxnews.com/2017/05/16/circa-prime-minister-ba
ngladesh-says-clinton-personally-pressured-her-help-donor). FoxNation.com. Archived (http
s://web.archive.org/web/20170731235430/http://nation.foxnews.com/2017/05/16/circa-prime-
minister-bangladesh-says-clinton-personally-pressured-her-help-donor) from the original on
31 July 2017. Retrieved 31 July 2017.
6. Vespa, Matt. "Oh My: Prime Minister Of Bangladesh Says Clinton Put Pressure On Her To
Help Donor" (https://townhall.com/tipsheet/mattvespa/2017/05/16/oh-my-prime-minister-of-ba
ngladesh-says-clinton-put-pressure-on-her-to-help--donor-n2325645). Townhall. Archived (ht
tps://web.archive.org/web/20170731233425/https://townhall.com/tipsheet/mattvespa/2017/0
5/16/oh-my-prime-minister-of-bangladesh-says-clinton-put-pressure-on-her-to-help--donor-n
2325645) from the original on 31 July 2017. Retrieved 31 July 2017.
7. "Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina Ousted After 15 Years, What Happens If Military Rule
Returns?" (https://www.timesnownews.com/world/asia/bangladesh-pm-sheikh-hasina-ouste
d-after-15-years-what-happens-if-military-rule-returns-article-112284595). Times Now. 5
August 2024. Retrieved 5 August 2024.
8. "Bangladesh Protests LIVE: Army says interim govt will be formed as PM Hasina lands in
India" (https://www.firstpost.com/world/bangladesh-protests-live-pm-sheikh-hasina-flees-dha
ka-army-to-address-soon-as-clashes-intensify-13801048.html). Firstpost. 5 August 2024.
Retrieved 5 August 2024.
9. "Bangladesh prime minister is reportedly ousted by student-led protests" (https://www.nbcne
ws.com/news/world/bangladesh-prime-minister-reportedly-ousted-student-led-protests-rcna1
65110). NBC News. 5 August 2024. Retrieved 5 August 2024.
10. "Why would Hasina head for India?" (https://www.bbc.com/news/live/ckdgg87lnkdt?post=ass
et%3Ae6e668c5-08e9-4000-b710-25d40a70f96a#post). BBC. 5 August 2024.
11. "বাংলাদেশে মন্ত্রীরা কী সুযোগ সুবিধা পান?" (https://www.bbc.com/bengali/news-46780360.amp).
BBC Bangla (in Bengali). 7 January 2019. Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/202203081
93523/https://www.bbc.com/bengali/news-46780360.amp) from the original on 8 March
2022. Retrieved 22 February 2021.

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