Finance Adviser Dr. Salehuddin Ahmed was confined to his office at the Secretariat today (10 December) for around four hours as hundreds of officials and employees staged a demonstration demanding the introduction of a 20% Secretariat allowance.
The protest began around 2:30pm, when several hundred non-cadre staff gathered on the third floor of the Finance Division, blocking both entry to and exit from the adviser’s office. Witnesses said 300–400 officials chanted slogans through handheld megaphones, calling for equal financial benefits for all Secretariat employees.
“All categories of officials working at the Secretariat are demanding a 20% Secretariat allowance,” said the personal officer of a secretary. “Employees in many other government offices receive various allowances outside the pay scale, but we do not.”
By 5pm, more staff had converged on the fourth floor of Building 11, with protesters using microphones from the connecting staircase to urge colleagues from other ministries to join the movement. Additional police personnel were deployed around the building as the crowd grew.
Chanting “Amader dabi mante hobe” (Our demands must be met), demonstrators remained stationed in front of the adviser’s office throughout the afternoon.
This is not the first time Secretariat officials have taken such action. They previously confined the finance adviser while demanding the restoration of the government employee ration system, during which the adviser assured them their demands would be reviewed.
Protesters said the government had earlier announced a dearness allowance for public servants, but it was never implemented. Although a new pay commission has since been formed, the finance adviser has stated that its recommendations will not be implemented by the current government, they added.