I did not resign: Sohel Taj

State minister for home Tanjim Ahmed, returning to work on Thursday after a rumour-filled four-day absence, has denied having tendered his resignation during that time.
“I never resigned,” Tanjim said when asked about the reports that he had quit his office, submitting his resignation to the prime minister on Monday.
He also said he would not be going on leave now as the parliament was set to begin its budget session. Tanjim had turned up for work at the home ministry at around 11:30am. Reluctant to talk to reporters at first, he said only that he was “indisposed.”
The junior minister, also popularly known as Sohel Taj, had been away from office since Sunday last, stoking the reports of his resignation.
On Wednesday evening, Tanjim, accompanied by home minister Sahara Khatun and LGRD minister Syed Ashraful Islam, had a two-hour meeting with prime minister Sheikh Hasina at her Hare Road residence.
A spokesman for the minister later that night said he had been absent from his office due to “illness”, not resignation.
“He could not attend office due to a fever,” Ruhul Amin, general secretary of Tanjim’s Kapasia constituency, told reporters late Wednesday night after meeting with the state minister at the latter’s Minto Road residence.
He will start attending his office regularly from Thursday, Amin had said.
Earlier in the week, reports spread that Tanjim had submitted his resignation when he was seen going into the prime minister’s office on Monday. He was also reported to have been ‘unreachable’ having switched off his mobile phone.
The home minister herself had said she was unable to contact him at the time, but denied the rumours of his resignation.
An official at the prime minister’s official residence, wishing anonymity, said Tanjim had met and had private discussions with the prime minister for an hour and a half on Monday evening.
The next day, Sahara said Tanjim had applied for leave citing personal grounds.
The home minister said she had approved his leave application and forwarded it to the prime minister. She added that Tanjim had talked about going to the US on leave to see his wife and children there. The home minister also rubbished media reports of disagreements between herself and her junior minister during his five months in office.
“Tanjim is like my own son. There arises no question at all of any rifts between us.”

Courtesy of bdnews24.com, Dhaka