The Police Headquarters (PHQ) has dismissed reports that Inspector General of Police (IGP) Baharul Alam has stepped down from his post.

“The news regarding the IGP’s resignation is not correct. Everyone is requested to refrain from spreading such misinformation,” PHQ said in a statement today.

Baharul, appointed IGP during the interim government, also denied the resignation rumours, saying the reports were not true. “No, such a thing did not happen. It is not correct,” he told The Daily Star.

The resignation speculation spread two days after the 13th national parliamentary election, at a time when a new BNP-led government was expected to be formed soon. The matter was also discussed at PHQ and the Ministry of Home Affairs.

However, an official claimed that Baharul expressed an “intention” to resign during an internal meeting with PHQ officials on Sunday.

The official was quoted as saying, “In the meeting, sir said, ‘I will not stay anymore. I do not feel like staying, I will leave’.”

Before the election, in January, the IGP submitted his official passport and applied for a regular passport. On Sunday, rumours of his resignation surfaced around nine months before the end of his tenure.

Baharul, who had retired earlier, was appointed as IGP on a two-year contract on November 20, 2024.

On the day the Awami League-led government fell in the face of a mass uprising on August 5, 2024, then IGP Chowdhury Abdullah Al Mamun went into hiding. The next midnight, Md Moinul Islam was given charge as the new police chief.

Later, amid criticism over the law and order situation, the government removed IGP Moinul Islam after three months, on November 20, 2024.

On the same day, it appointed retired officer Baharul Alam as IGP on a two-year contract.