Public Policy & Accountability · Published: 28 September 2026 · Information current to 28 September 2026

Bangladesh for Everyone: The Public-Safety Test of Salahuddin Ahmed’s Home Affairs Tenure

Minhaz Samad Chowdhury | Human Rights Defender and Governance/Public Policy Analyst

Read the Bangla edition

A home minister’s performance is not measured by the firmness of a press-conference statement. It is measured at the police station where a citizen tries to report a crime, in the investigation that follows, and in whether people can travel, worship, organise and speak without fear. The test is especially clear for those whose safety is most easily overlooked: political dissenters, religious and ethnic minorities, women, children and people living far from the centres of power.

Salahuddin Ahmed assumed responsibility for Bangladesh’s Home Affairs Ministry in February 2026 amid continuing demands for a more professional police service and credible public security. The government has conducted special operations, senior police officials have issued directions on timely and impartial investigations, and the minister has spoken about reform and public confidence. It would therefore be inaccurate to describe his tenure as one of complete inaction. Yet important indicators remain mixed, a police-accountability initiative has not become a lasting statute, and people continue to ask whether equal citizenship is being matched by equal protection.

Scope and fairness: This is an evidence-based public-policy assessment, not a claim that the Home Minister alone causes or controls every crime. Public safety depends on the police, prosecutors, courts, local administration and the wider political climate. 

The crime figures tell a mixed story

Police Headquarters data reported by The Business Standard show 99,992 cases recorded across crime categories between February and July 2026, compared with 89,012 between August 2025 and January 2026. That is an increase of 10,980 recorded cases. The direction, however, differs by category.

Police-recorded cases in two consecutive six-month periods

Category	Aug 2025–Jan 2026	Feb–Jul 2026	Reported direction
Robbery	960	904	Down
Snatching	328	256	Down
Theft	5,113	4,808	Down
Murder cases	1,780	1,789	Slightly up
Violence against women and children	10,090	11,165	Up
Assaults on police	275	317	Up

These are recorded cases, not a complete count of all crimes committed. Changes in willingness to report, police case registration, classification and the filing of cases for earlier incidents can all affect the totals. Nor does the February–July period align exactly with the new government’s time in office: the first 16 days of February preceded its assumption of office. The figures can help identify trends, but they do not by themselves prove that a minister caused an increase or a decline.

On 10 September, Ahmed told Parliament that law and order had visibly improved and that short-, medium- and long-term strategies were in place. That is the government’s assessment. A credible public account should also explain the increase in total recorded cases and in cases involving violence against women and children, murder and assaults on police. Targets, comparable monthly data and clear explanations would make the claim of improvement testable.

Operations matter; outcomes matter more

Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (BSS) reported that police arrested 32,908 people in special operations between 1 May and 12 July 2026. Police also reported 83,817 arrests through regular cases and operations over the same period, alongside recoveries of weapons, ammunition and drugs. The minister said 15 police officers had been recognised in June, and Police Headquarters directed investigators to pursue impartial investigations and faster resolution of serious cases. These are tangible administrative actions.

But arrest totals are an incomplete measure of success. The public also needs to know how many cases resulted in evidence-based charge sheets, how many reached a court decision, whether detainees received due process, and what remedies victims obtained. Publishing this sequence would help distinguish effective policing from activity that is visible but not yet shown to improve safety or justice.

Mob violence demands prevention, not only condemnation

Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK) monitoring, reported for January–August 2026, recorded at least 154 deaths in mob beatings. ASK’s figure is a rights organisation’s media-based monitoring, compiled using a different method from police crime statistics. It should not be added to or directly compared with police case totals. Still, the number of reported deaths raises urgent questions about early warning, rapid response and investigations after an attack.

Ahmed expressed confidence earlier in his tenure that the culture of mob violence had ended. The subsequent monitoring makes that confidence something the government must demonstrate with evidence. This does not mean every incident was within the minister’s direct control. It does mean that the ministry should make its prevention and response arrangements visible.

A practical step would be a public national protocol explaining how police, local administration and emergency services coordinate when a crowd threatens a person; how someone held by a crowd is transferred safely into lawful custody; how victims, witnesses and evidence are protected; and how response times and investigation progress are reviewed. Standards should account for local geography and risk rather than impose an unrealistic identical response time everywhere.

The unfinished question of an independent Police Commission

The Police Reform Commission established in 2025 recommended changes to or replacement of 22 laws, alongside proposals on public complaints, use-of-force rules and transparency in appointments and postings. A Police Commission Ordinance was issued under the interim administration, but it ceased to have effect after it was not enacted as a law within the required period. In April, government representatives said a new bill would follow after review, without announcing a firm timetable.

The ordinance itself had drawn criticism from Transparency International Bangladesh, which argued that its proposed structure did not adequately insulate the commission from government influence. The task, then, was not simply to revive the old text. The minister could have put forward a stronger bill, informed by consultation with police personnel, legal experts, civil society and opposition parties, with credible independence, investigative powers, transparent appointments, adequate resources and public reporting built into the law. As of 28 September, the public legislative list and reviewed reporting did not show a new Police Commission Act. That is a specific and verifiable policy gap in the public record, although the government should disclose any work still under way.

“Bangladesh for everyone” must mean equal protection

On 4 September, Ahmed said citizens should enjoy equal rights, security and freedom on the basis of citizenship, rather than being separated as “minorities.” His stated commitment to “Bangladesh for everyone” is a welcome principle. But equal citizenship must not make group-specific risks invisible. The state can affirm equal dignity while still collecting information that helps it identify and prevent targeted harm.

Bangladesh’s Constitution guarantees equality before the law and equal protection, prohibits discrimination on specified grounds including religion, protects every person’s right to legal protection and life, and recognises peaceful assembly, freedom of thought and expression, and citizens’ freedom to practise religion. These rights make equal safety a public duty, not a favour extended to any community.

There is a concrete implementation question. On 22 June, leaders of the Bangladesh Puja Udjapan Parishad proposed a designated Home Ministry focal-point officer to receive reports of incidents affecting minority communities. BSS reported that the minister said the proposal would be considered sympathetically and implemented as soon as possible. In the public sources reviewed through 28 September, I found no confirmation that the officer had been appointed. That is not proof that no internal action occurred; it is a reason to publish the officer’s name, contact route, responsibilities and response standard.

Minority safety needs year-round, measurable protection

Published figures on violence against religious and ethnic minorities differ because organisations use different monitoring methods and classifications. The Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council (BHBCUC), drawing on media reports and its own documentation, claimed 257 incidents of communal violence in January–June 2026, including 44 deaths, 62 attacks on places of worship and 47 attacks on homes or businesses. The Human Rights Support Society (HRSS) reported 50 attacks against minority communities that left 56 people injured in the same six-month period; for the corresponding period in 2025, it reported 10 attacks and four injuries. These are attributed to civil-society findings, not a government census, and should not be added together or treated as directly comparable.

In June, the Home Minister said incidents were few, the administration had taken prompt legal action, and persecution of minorities had fallen to its lowest level. To assess that claim, the public needs consistent information on reported incidents, case registration, investigations, charge sheets, trials, compensation and the return of land or property, broken down by district and type of incident while protecting personal privacy.

Protection should not be confined to religious festivals. The ministry could establish year-round risk assessments around places of worship, neighbourhoods, land disputes and online incitement; accessible 24-hour reporting; safeguards for complainants, witnesses and affected families; prompt impartial investigations; and regular reviews with local administrations and community representatives. Each reported case should be examined on its evidence, not dismissed as “isolated” before the facts are established.

The safety of dissent is part of public safety

Security is also the ability to criticise the government peacefully, organise politically, practise journalism and assemble without intimidation. Articles 37 and 39 of the Constitution protect peaceful assembly and freedom of thought and expression, subject to lawful restrictions. Authorities may investigate violence or other offences, but peaceful criticism should not be treated as a crime in itself.

On 23 April, Human Rights Watch reported that at least four people had been arrested in connection with social-media posts critical of the government and raised concerns about the use of cyber laws. This was the organisation’s assessment of particular cases, not a finding about the outcome of every proceeding. On 27 September, The Daily Star reported that journalists, lawyers and rights advocates were concerned that vague provisions in proposed cyber-law amendments on misinformation, defamation, content removal and arrests could be misused. A government adviser said the draft was not final and feedback would be considered. The balance between addressing online harm and protecting legitimate expression remains a live policy test.

The Home Ministry and police leadership could help meet that test through clear written standards for policing peaceful assemblies; legal review before arrests in expression-related cases; independent review of complaints; transparent investigation of attacks on journalists and rights defenders; and public consultation on cyber-law drafts. Broad or unclear offences and unchecked content blocking can chill lawful speech and need effective safeguards.

Eight steps the Home Minister could have taken

1. Publish a time-bound reform roadmap. For each relevant Police Reform Commission recommendation, state whether it is accepted, under revision or rejected, name the responsible agency and set a deadline.
2. Introduce an independent police complaints commission bill. Replace the lapsed ordinance with legislation that protects appointments, funding, investigations and public reporting from undue executive control.
3. Report measurable public-safety outcomes. Publish monthly, comparable district-level data on cases received, investigations, charge sheets, court outcomes and victim support, explaining changes in classification and late-filed cases.
4. Adopt a public protocol against mob violence. Set risk-based coordination and response procedures, protect victims and witnesses, preserve evidence, and publish quarterly reviews of action taken.
5. Improve services for women and children. Coordinate complaint intake, medical and forensic care, safe shelter and legal aid, with published service standards.
6. Make the minority-safety focal point operational. Publish its appointment and contact details, provide a year-round reporting route, protect complainants and witnesses, and disclose case progress in aggregated form.
7. Safeguard dissent and peaceful assembly. Issue clear policing guidance, ensure review of arrests and complaints, and provide meaningful public consultation and legal safeguards in cyber legislation.
8. Make political neutrality testable. Publish standards for postings, transfers and promotions; create safe channels for reporting political pressure; and report findings when misconduct is established.

Some administrative work may already be under way. What citizens need is public evidence of implementation: a responsible office, a deadline, a measurable result and a route for independent scrutiny.

The verdict is not final—but accountability cannot wait

It would be simplistic to call Ahmed’s first seven months wholly unsuccessful. Some recorded theft, robbery and snatching cases fell; special operations took place; police issued investigation directions; and the minister has spoken about longer-term strategies. It would be equally simplistic to accept the government’s claim of visible improvement without fuller evidence. Total recorded cases rose, as did cases involving violence against women and children, murder and assaults on police. ASK reported a high toll from mob beatings; rights groups documented minority-related incidents; concerns remain about expression-related arrests; and an independent police commission law is still absent from the public record reviewed here.

The minister can still turn criticism into a practical agenda: set a timetable for a police commission bill, publish comparable public-safety data, confirm the minority-safety focal point, protect lawful expression and establish verifiable measures against mob and other serious violence. Public safety is not one headline number. It is the combined experience of protection, impartial law enforcement, credible investigation and access to remedy. The next assessment of his tenure will depend less on assurances than on what the public can verify.

Sources and method

1. Bangla edition of this feature, Civic Vision Bangladesh, 28 September 2026.
2. Constitution of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh, Articles 27, 28, 31, 32, 37, 39 and 41.
3. BSS, Home Minister’s statement on equal citizenship and “Bangladesh for everyone”, 4 September 2026.
4. BSS, Minority safety, administrative action and the proposal for a Home Ministry focal-point officer, 22 June 2026.
5. The Business Standard, Police-recorded crime trends: theft and robbery down, murder and violence against women and children up.
6. BSS, Arrests and recoveries in special operations, 13 July 2026.
7. BSS, Police directions on impartial investigations and faster action, 29 July 2026.
8. The Daily Star, Home Minister’s parliamentary statement on visible improvement and smart policing, 10 September 2026.
9. ASK, Mob-beating monitoring, January–August 2026; death figure reported by The Daily Observer, 28 September 2026.
10. BSS, Police Reform Commission recommendations, 15 January 2025.
11. Bangladesh Laws, Police Commission Ordinance, 2025; Prothom Alo, Government statement on bringing new bills for lapsed ordinances, 13 April 2026.
12. Transparency International Bangladesh, Assessment of the Police Commission Ordinance’s independence and structure, 15 December 2025.
13. Legislative and Parliamentary Affairs Division, List of laws enacted in 2026, reviewed through 28 September 2026.
14. Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council, Its January–June 2026 documentation and claims on communal violence.
15. Human Rights Support Society, January–June 2026 human-rights monitoring report, based on national media reports and the organisation’s own information collection.
16. Human Rights Watch, Report on four arrests linked to social-media criticism of the government, 23 April 2026.
17. The Daily Star, Concerns over proposed cyber-law amendments and freedom of expression, 27 September 2026.
18. Ministry of Home Affairs, Official profile of Salahuddin Ahmed.

Sources use different periods, definitions and methods. Police-registered cases do not represent the total number of crimes or convictions; rights-group incident counts are attributed to the organisations that compiled them. 

© Civic Vision Bangladesh (CVB)