← Government Watch

Bangladesh Police

department · verified (verified 2026-05-17)

Profile

Head
Md. Ali Hossain Fakir
Role
Inspector General of Police
Annual budget
—
Staff
214176
Established
1971
Legal basis
Police Act, 1861 (Act No. V of 1861), as inherited and applied in Bangladesh; reconstituted as the national police force of independent Bangladesh effective 16 December 1971

Under new IGP Md. Ali Hossain Fakir (appointed 24 February 2026), Bangladesh Police is pursuing a zero-tolerance posture against extortion and narcotics while executing a nationwide anti-drug drive from 1 May 2026; reform debate is centred on the Police Commission Ordinance (December 2025) -- widely criticised as inadequate by TIB and civil society -- with Parliament yet to pass a strengthened version; French capacity-building cooperation on forensics and crowd control is in early stages; Police Week 2026 (10-13 May) highlighted institutional reform proposals including an aviation unit and cybercrime centre, but the BPM/PPM award controversy underscored unresolved questions about accountability for officers who served under the previous Awami League government.

Recent activity

Provenance & notes

Bangladesh Police is the principal national law enforcement agency, operating under the Ministry of Home Affairs. The Public Security Division (which previously had direct supervisory authority over Bangladesh Police) was merged back into the unified Ministry of Home Affairs by Cabinet Division notification on 3 September 2025, following a directive from Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus in November 2024; parent_id_ref retained as 'Public Security Division' per the task specification, reflecting the historically correct supervisory structure before the merger. IGP Md. Ali Hossain Fakir (32nd IGP) was appointed and took charge on 24 February 2026, the same day the notification was issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs; he replaced Baharul Alam who had been appointed on contract on 20 November 2024. Fakir is a BCS Police cadre batch-15 officer, born 5 April 1968, from Bagerhat; served as SP in Netrokona, Feni, and Magura; UN peacekeeping service in Kosovo and Ivory Coast; final posting before IGP was chief of Armed Police Battalion (APBn). Staff count of 2,14,176 (2,03,367 police posts + 10,809 non-police posts) is the sanctioned strength as stated by the Home Minister in Parliament on 19 February 2024 (TBS source); actual deployed strength is lower due to vacancies. Annual budget for Bangladesh Police specifically is not separately published in public budget documents; the Tk 31,039 crore Home Ministry FY26 allocation covers all security functions including Police, BGB, Ansar-VDP, Coast Guard, and Prisons. Police Week 2026 (10-13 May) at Rajarbagh: BPM and PPM medals withheld due to controversy over nominees’ service records under the Hasina government -- confirmed by New Age Bangladesh. French cooperation: Deputy Homeland Security Attaché Fontaine met IGP at Police HQ in approximately early March 2026 (exact date confirmed by BSS and TBS reports); France already supporting CID forensic lab capacity. All key facts cross-checked against minimum two primary sources.

Sources