They separately served as ministers, state ministers and even deputy ministers in the previous cabinet of the Awami League government. Some of them even worked in some of the “most crucial” ministries.
However, they failed to retain their positions in the latest cabinet sworn in on January 11.
Prior to that, some of them were even denied the party ticket. Also, several others lost the January 7 general election, meaning they would no longer be able to enter the House as lawmakers in the government’s new tenure.
Some of the former cabinet members have already retired after years of service in the cabinet and handling of various responsibilities.
A few of them shared their experience with Bangla Tribune.
Fifteen ministers and 13 state ministers of the former cabinet lost their ministerial portfolios in the new government. In fact, three of the state ministers were deprived of the Awami League’s nomination while three others lost the election.
The ministers
Foreign Minister AKM Abdul Momen, Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal, Agriculture Minister Abdur Razzaque, Planning Minister MA Mannan, Textiles and Jute Minister Golam Dastagir Gazi, Health Minister Zahid Maleque, Posts and Telecommunications Minister Mostafa Jabbar, Fisheries and Livestock Minister SM Rezaul Karim, Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi, Social Welfare Minister Nuruzzaman Ahmed, Environment, Forest, and Climate Change Minister Md Shahab Uddin, Chittagong Hill Tracts Affairs Minister Bir Bahadur Ushwe Singh, Land Minister Saifuzzaman Chowdhury, Railways Minister Nurul Islam Sujan and Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas Employment Minister Imran Ahmad are the 15 former cabinet members.
State Minister for Labour and Employment Begum Monnujan Sufian, State Minister for Primary and Mass Education Zakir Hossain and State Minister for Cultural Affairs KM Khalid were not given the party ticket.
Despite being endorsed by the Awami League, State Minister for Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives Swapan Bhattacharjee State Minister for Civil Aviation Mahbub Ali lost the election.
What do they say now?
In the new cabinet, Mustafa Kamal was not included despite being re-elected an MP. The former minister said he has plenty of free time now.
“I’ll take a break and return to work after that,” he said.
Mustafa Kamal, who is also a cricket organizer, served as planning minister before taking charge of the finance ministry.
Business is his main profession. So the Comilla-10 MP is determined to enjoy his leisure now before he, also well-known as Lotus Kamal, resumes working as a lawmaker and a businessman in full swing.
Tipu Munshi, hailing from Rangpur’s Pirgachha Upazila, was elected from his constituency for the fourth time on the trot.
Despite being an Awami League leader, he is involved in the readymade garment industry.
Also a former president of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association, Tipu now plans to concentrate more on his business alongside serving as the MP while he was not inducted in the latest cabinet. Additionally, he will continue his role in the party’s Gulshan unit.
“I’ll join the first session of parliament on January 30. Other than continuing with developing my locality (Rangpur), I have to keep an eye on my business,” he said.
Update of some state ministers
Former ministers Nurul Islam Sujan and SM Rezaul Karim, and former state minister Mahbub Ali have already returned to the Supreme Court to handle cases, donning the familiar attire of lawyers after fulfilling lengthy government duties.
The trio were seen engaged in a conversation in the chambers of the Supreme Court Bar Association on January 14.
Sujan was elected an MP for the fourth time in a row.
Rezaul Karim first won the 2018 election and was appointed the housing and public works minister on January 7, 2019. Later on, he was made fisheries and livestock minister.
Both Sujan and Rezaul Karim failed to make it to the latest cabinet.
What are others doing?
Golam Dastagir Gazi, Zahid Maleque, Enamur Rahman and Mostafa Zabbar returned to their business.
Former state minister Monnujan Sufian and ex-state minister of women and children affairs Fazilatun Nesa Indira are already back in full-fledged politics.
MA Mannan and Shamsul Alam are in leisure now. Mannan is again trying to become active in politics in Sunamganj while Shamsul plans to concentrate on research. He was a university teacher before becoming a bureaucrat.
Mannan said: “Politics is in my blood. I can think of nothing without politics. From now on, I’ll spend more time in my constituency.”
Bir Bahadur Ushwe Singh, echoing a similar sentiment, said he was all set to return to Bandarban to spend more time with locals.
