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Office of the Attorney General

constitutional · verified (verified 2026-05-17)

Profile

Head
Barrister Md Ruhul Quddus Kazal
Role
Attorney General
Annual budget
—
Staff
—
Established
1972
Legal basis
Constitution of Bangladesh, Article 64 (appointment, qualifications, tenure, duties); Bangladesh Law Officers Order, 1972 (President's Order No. 6 of 1972) -- governing instrument for the office and all subordinate law officers

AG Ruhul Quddus Kazal (18th AG, appointed 25 March 2026) is managing three concurrent high-stakes legal fronts: (1) Hasina extradition -- preparing the legal file under the 2013 India-Bangladesh Extradition Treaty as diplomatic pressure on India continues post-April 8 formal request; (2) ICT trials -- coordinating state legal positions across multiple active International Crimes Tribunal proceedings including the Hasina Kallyanpur charge hearing and the imminent Inu verdict; (3) Adani arbitration -- the government's UK counsel (3 Verulam Building, KC Farhaz Khan) is handling SIAC proceedings on coal-tariff dispute with Adani Power (~$485 million claim), with AGO providing state-side legal oversight and advice on treaty obligations.

Recent activity

Provenance & notes

The Office of the Attorney General is a constitutional body, not a ministry or department; it has no annual budget line published separately in the Finance Division's budget documents. The AGO operates under the Bangladesh Law Officers Order, 1972, and Constitution Article 64. The AG is ex-officio Chairman of the Bangladesh Bar Council. Chronology of AGs immediately preceding the current: (16th) Barrister Raghib Rauf Chowdhury; (17th) Md Asaduzzaman (appointed August 8, 2024, resigned December 27, 2025 to contest elections as BNP candidate; won Jhenaidah-1 and was sworn in as Law Minister on February 17, 2026); (18th) Barrister Ruhul Quddus Kazal (appointed March 25, 2026, office had been vacant for ~87 days). The official website is https://ag.gov.bd (also accessible via https://attorneygeneral.gov.bd). No public figure is available for the AGO's sanctioned staff count or annual budget allocation; law officers' individual retainer and allowance rates are set by gazette under the Bangladesh Law Officers Order, 1972. The Adani arbitration at SIAC (initiated by Adani Power, claiming ~$485 million in unpaid dues) is being handled by UK chambers 3 Verulam Building (KC Farhaz Khan) on behalf of BPDB, with the AGO holding state-side legal oversight responsibility. Verification: all appointment facts cross-checked against BSS, Daily Star, TBS, Prothom Alo, and New Age (5 sources for the core AG appointment); constitutional basis cross-checked against bdlaws.minlaw.gov.bd primary text.

Sources