At least 35 former ministers and state ministers of the previous Grand Alliance government have failed to secure berths in the new cabinet of Sheikh Hasina. The
ministers and state ministers have been dropped from the cabinet because of their alleged poor performance and controversial roles. The influential ministers axed from
the new cabinet include former minister for home affairs Dr Mohiuddin Khan Alamgir, minister for law, justice and parliamentary affairs Shafique Ahmed, minister
without portfolio Suranjit Sengupta, minister for telecommunications Sahara Khatun, minister for foreign affairs Dipu Moni, minister for environment and forests Hasan
Mahmud, minister for food Abdur Razzak, minister for industries Dilip Barua, minister for civil aviation Faruk Khan, minister for commerce GM?Quader, minister for
disaster and relief AH Mahmud Ali, minister for planning AK Khandaker and minister for jute and textile Abdul Latif Biswas.
Minister for labour Rajiuddin Ahmed Raju, minister for health AFM Ruhal Haque, minister for primary and mass education Afsarul Amin, minister for cultural affairs Abul
Kalam Azad, minister for water resources Romesh Chandra Sen, minister for social welfare Mostafa Shahid, minister for information, communication and technology Mostafa
Faruk Mohammad and minister for land Rezaul Karim Hira were also given the elbow.
The influential state ministers who failed to get berths in the new cabinet include state minister for home affairs Shamsul Haque Tuku, state minister for local
government, rural development and cooperatives Jahangir Kabir Nanak, state minister for land Abdul Mannan Khan, state minister for Liberation War affairs ABM Tajul
Islam, state minister for power Enamul Haque, state minister for labour Munnujan Sufian and state minister for youth and sports Ahad Ali Sarker.
The other state ministers dropped from the new cabinet are state minister for hill tracts affairs, Dipankar Talukder, state minister for water resources, Mahbubur
Rahman, state minister for religious affairs, Shajahan Miah, state minister for health and family planning, Mujibur Rahman Fakir, state minister for industries, Omar
Faruq Chowdhury, state minister for fisheries and livestock, Abdul Hye and state minister for primary and mass education, Motahar Hossain.
Talking to reporters at Bangabhaban after taking oath as a new minister, Awami League general secretary Syed Ashraful Islam said: “The Prime Minister relieved those
who had failed to perform on previous occasions.”
Courtesy of The Independent
