Noman Mosharef :
A total of 25 ministers, nine state and two deputy ministers of the immediate past cabinet have been dropped.
The Awami League bigwigs Industries Minister Amir Hossain Amu, Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed, Agriculture Minister Matia Chowdhury, Health Minister Mohammad Nasim, LGRD Minister Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain, Expatriate Welfare Minister Nurul Islam, Social Welfare Minister Rashed Khan Menon and Housing and Public Works Minister Engineer Mosharraf Hossain have been dropped from the new cabinet.
Public Administration Minister Syed Ashraful Islam died on January 3. On the other hand, Finance Minister AMA Muhith, prior to the 11th parliamentary election, said that he would take retirement and that is why he did not participate in the December 30 national election.
Among the Awami League-led 14-party grand alliance, Workers Party of Bangladesh President and former Social Welfare Minister Rashed Khan Menon and Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal (JSD) President and former Information Minister Hasanul Huq Inu have not been included in the new cabinet.
Former Shipping Minister Shajahan Khan, Relief and Disaster Management Minister Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury Maya, Foreign Minister Abul Hasan Mahmud Ali, Cultural Affairs Minister Asaduzzaman Noor and Food Minister Qamrul Islam also have not been considered this time.
Of them, Maya was not given nomination to contest the just ended national election.
Among the state ministers, former State Minister for Textiles and Jute Mirza Azam, Jatiya Party Presidium Member and State Minister for Labour Mujibul Haque Chunnu, State Minister for Information Tarana Halim and State Minister for Local Government Mushiur Rahman Ranga have also been axed.
There is no Jatiya Party lawmaker in the new cabinet as the party has recently announced that it would act as a real and effective opposition party in the 11th parliament.
There were three state ministers in the immediate past cabinet.
