Staff Correspondent

Speculation is mounting across administrative, judicial, and civil society circles over who will become the next chairman and commissioners of the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC).

With the country transitioning through significant political changes following the recent mass uprising, the incoming anti-corruption leadership faces the monumental task of addressing major financial irregularities, money laundering, and institutional corruption across multiple regimes.

A total of 327 applicants have submitted their resumes to the high-level search committee, expressing interest in leading the statutory independent body.

The applicants include retired bureaucrats, former ACC officials, retired military and law enforcement personnel, senior lawyers, retired judges, academics, and journalists.

The five-member search committee, headed by Supreme Court Appellate Division Justice Md. Rezaul Haque, has received a surge of applications, a majority of which are from retired administration cadre officers. Among the prominent former bureaucrats are former Railway Secretary Abdullahil Baki, who is the brother of the Prime Minister's Advisor Md. Ismail Zabiullah, and former Cabinet Secretary A.S.M. Abdul Halim, who is widely known as a pro-BNP bureaucrat, author, and politician who previously contested the parliamentary elections from the Jamalpur-2 constituency. Several veteran ACC insiders have also applied, including retired Director Generals Md. Sahiduzzaman and Syed Iqbal Hossain, current acting Director General AKM Amirul Alam, retired Director Md. Abul Hasan, and former Deputy Director Md. Ahsan Ali. From the legal sector, prominent lawyers like retired military official and current ACC panel lawyer Barrister M. Sarwar Hossain have submitted their CVs, alongside at least three retired High Court and Appellate Division judges and several retired district and sessions judges.

The search committee held its second meeting today to scrutinize the applications and shortlist the most capable candidates. According to sources close to the committee, the panel will eventually recommend a shortlist of at least six qualified individuals to the President. From this recommended list, the President will formally appoint three individuals as commissioners, designating one of them as the Chairman of the commission.

The three top executive positions at the ACC have been vacant since March 3, 2026, following the en masse resignation of the previous commission led by Mohammad Abdul Momen.

This prolonged vacancy has severely disrupted the day-to-day operations of the anti-corruption watchdog. Crucial decisions, including initiating inquiries into new complaints, approving formal corruption charges, and appointing panel lawyers to prevent suspected money launderers from fleeing the country, have remained suspended. To break the deadlock, the government formed the five-member search committee on June 22, 2026. Led by Justice Md. Rezaul Haque, the committee also includes High Court Division Justice Razik-Al-Jalil, Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) S M Rezvi, Public Service Commission (PSC) Chairman Mobasser Monem, and Cabinet Secretary Nasimul Gani.

According to the ACC Act, individuals must have at least 20 years of experience in law, education, administration, judiciary, or disciplined forces to be considered for these roles. Conversely, current public servants, non-citizens, loan defaulters, undischarged bankrupts, individuals convicted of moral turpitude or corruption, and those who faced major departmental punishments during their career are legally disqualified from these appointments.