Bangladesh Police wants to change its uniform as soon as possible and introduce a new one. Over the past week, the police administration has met with home minister Salahuddin Ahmed twice at the secretariat and presented five colour options for new uniforms. The police want the government to select one of these options.
However, the Ministry of Home Affairs prefers a cautious approach rather than a rushed decision. Officials at the Ministry of Home Affairs, speaking on condition of anonymity, said there is no scope for frequent uniform changes, so the decision must be taken carefully, as it also involves significant cost.
Officials at the Ministry of Home Affairs declined to comment on how much it costs to change police uniforms once. However, it has been learnt that during the tenure of the interim government, two firms were awarded contracts to supply fabric for police uniforms, which had a total value of Tk 760 million (76 crore).Following the fall of the Awami League government on 5 August 2024 in the face of the July mass uprising, demands emerged for police reform. Some also called for a change in police uniforms.
In this context, a decision was taken on 20 January last year at a meeting of the advisory council committee on law and order to change the police uniform. An iron-coloured uniform was selected. Police began field operations in the new uniform on 25 November last year, although not all personnel have received it yet.
Alongside the police, decisions were taken to change the uniforms of the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) and Ansar as well. Olive-coloured uniforms were selected for RAB and golden wheat-coloured uniforms for Ansar. However, these changes were not implemented during the interim government’s term.
Assistant inspector general (Media and PR) at the Police Headquarters, AHM Shahadat Hossain, told Prothom Alo last November that the police force in Bangladesh consists of around 200,000 personnel. Each member is provided with five sets of uniforms annually by the government.
Sources at the Police Headquarters said the uniform had previously been changed in 2004. After around 21 years, changes were made to the police uniform in 2025. However, the uniform drew mixed reactions among field-level police personnel.
Many police members are unable to accept the change and have raised questions about the colour. They say the colour of the uniform does not look good. They are also feeling uncomfortable due to being trolled on social media.
After the BNP government took office on 17 February, the Bangladesh Police Service Association on 24 February requested a reconsideration of the decision to change the police uniform. In a statement, the organisation said that the new uniform selected by the interim government ignored the skin tone of police members, the weather, and their opinions.
The uniform, selected without any form of public opinion review, has an almost identical resemblance to those of other uniformed agencies. As a result, it has become difficult to identify police members in the field. Most members of the force are not in favour of this hurried change, added the statement.
Speaking as chief guest at an event at the Bangladesh Police Academy in Rajshahi’s Sardah on 28 March, home minister Salahuddin Ahmed said that the police force is not satisfied with the current uniform. He said a decision would be taken soon, after discussions at the highest level of government, so that the police can regain one of their old traditional uniforms.
