Compulsory retirement for government employees if they participate in agitation

The government has issued the Government Services (Second Amendment) Ordinance, 2025, providing for compulsory retirement or dismissal from service for government employees if they engage in activities such as participating in agitation. This ordinance has been issued by the Legislative and Parliamentary Affairs Division of the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs, which was signed by the Secretary of the Division, Dr. Hafiz Ahmed Chowdhury.

This new ordinance states that if any government employee disobeys a lawful order of a higher authority, does not comply with any order, circular or directive of the government without legal reason or obstructs its implementation, or incites any other employee to do so, it will be considered as government misconduct. Similarly, the incident of being absent from work collectively without leave or reasonable cause or obstructing another employee from working will also be considered as an offense.

For such misconduct, the accused government servant can be punished with any of the three punishments - demotion to a lower rank, compulsory retirement or dismissal from service. These matters are clearly mentioned in Section 37(a) of the Ordinance.

The complaint process states that after the complaint is filed against the accused employee, he must be given a show cause notice within seven (7) working days and the notice will mention whether he wants a hearing or not. The person who files the complaint can be the appointing authority or any person authorized by it.

A very important point is that there is no opportunity to appeal against the President's order. However, if the convicted employee wants, he can apply for a review within 30 working days of receiving the order and the President will issue a final order on the basis of that application, if he thinks fit. The Ordinance states that this review will be the final decision.

The Ordinance states that since Parliament is currently dissolved and it is necessary to take action in an emergency situation, the President has issued this Ordinance under Article 93(1) of the Constitution. It will come into effect immediately.

According to legal experts, although the word ‘movement’ is not directly used, the clause and wording clearly indicate that the main objective of this ordinance is to prevent government employees from engaging in activities such as strikes, lockouts, work stoppages or absenteeism. If this ordinance comes into force, government employees will face severe penalties if they participate in such activities in the future.