The government has appointed leaders of the ruling Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) to the top positions of 11 government institutions on one-year contractual terms.

Never before have so many politicians been appointed simultaneously to senior positions in government agencies, boards and corporations.

The law does not prevent the government from appointing individuals from outside the civil service to the top positions of state-owned institutions.

However, appointing civil servants to these posts had long become the established practice. Following independence, in 1972 the government appointed politicians to the top positions of several state-owned organisations, including the Bangladesh Rural Development Board.

Although successive governments later made similar appointments, they remained limited in scope.

Public administration experts believe that previous appointments of politicians to such positions did not produce significant benefits.

They say it remains to be seen how the newly appointed individuals perform in their respective roles. They also warn that the law's broad provisions allowing such appointments carry a risk of misuse.