Article 58 When other ministers leave office
Tenure of office of other Ministers
It gives the Prime Minister control over the team and ensures ministries keep working during transitions, which matters for anyone awaiting government decisions.
In force as printed. Following the reported revival of Article 58A (High Court Division, 17 December 2024, upheld by the Appellate Division on 9 July 2026), Chapter II except Article 55(4) to (6) does not apply while Parliament is dissolved; bdlaws does not yet reflect this.
The Prime Minister may at any time ask a minister, minister of state or deputy minister to resign. Ministers who resign do so by placing their resignation with the Prime Minister for submission to the President.
If the minister refuses to resign, the Prime Minister may advise the President to terminate the appointment. The President, acting on that advice, directs that the office be vacated under Article 58(1)(c), and the minister cannot resist the decision.
A minister who ceases to be an MP loses the ministerial post, except a technocrat minister chosen under the proviso to Article 56(2). This rule, and resignation and collective exit, do not disqualify a minister from holding office while Parliament stands dissolved.
If the Prime Minister resigns or ceases to hold office, every other minister is deemed to have resigned too. Each continues to hold office until a successor enters upon office, so ministries are never left without political heads.
In plain English
How Article 58 works
Article 58 covers when ministers other than the Prime Minister leave office. A minister leaves by resigning through the Prime Minister to the President, by ceasing to be an MP (unless the minister is a technocrat), on the President's direction, or when the Prime Minister leaves office. The Prime Minister can ask any minister to resign and, if the minister refuses, can advise the President to end the appointment. Ministers can stay on while Parliament is dissolved. If the Prime Minister goes, all ministers are treated as having resigned but carry on until successors take over. The word minister here includes ministers of state and deputy ministers.
In practice
Article 58 gives the Prime Minister effective control over the composition of the government, since dismissal on advice cannot be resisted. Clause (4) links every minister's tenure to the Prime Minister's: when the Prime Minister resigned on 5 August 2024, the whole ministry went with her, and the interim government that followed was appointed on a different basis. With Article 58A revived, during a future dissolution this Chapter will not apply except Article 55(4) to (6), and under Article 58C(2) the outgoing ministers continue only until the Chief Adviser is appointed.
The text
What Article 58 says
58. (1) The office of a Minister other than the Prime Minister shall become vacant –
(a) if he resigns from office by placing his resignation in the hands of the Prime Minister for submission to the President;
(b) if he ceases to be a member of Parliament, but this shall not be applicable to a Minister chosen under the proviso to article 56(2);
(c) if the President, pursuant to the provisions of clause (2), so directs; or
(d) as provided in clause (4).
(2) The Prime Minister may at any time request a Minister to resign, and if such Minister fails to comply with the request, may advise the President to terminate the appointment of such Minister.
(3) Nothing in sub clauses (a), (b) and (d) of clause (1) shall disqualify a Minister for holding office during any period in which Parliament stands dissolved.
(4) If the Prime Minister resigns from or ceases to hold office each of the other Ministers shall be deemed also to have resigned from office but shall, subject to the provisions of this Chapter, continue to hold office until his successor has entered upon office.
(5) In this article “Minister” includes Minister of State and Deputy Minister.
English text as published on the official Laws of Bangladesh website. Where a court has changed the position, the status note above explains it.
History
Amendments
- Twelfth Amendment 1991Chapters I, II and III of Part IV were substituted for the former Chapters I and II by section 3 of Act XXVIII of 1991, restoring the parliamentary system of government.
Connected provisions
Related articles
Questions
Article 58: frequently asked questions
Can the Prime Minister dismiss a minister in Bangladesh?
Yes. Under Article 58(2), the Prime Minister may ask a minister to resign and, if the minister does not, may advise the President to terminate the appointment. The President acts on that advice.
What happens to ministers when the Prime Minister resigns?
Under Article 58(4), all other ministers are deemed to have resigned as well, but they continue to hold office until their successors enter upon office. This keeps ministries functioning during a change of government.
Sources
- Constitution of the People's Republic of Bangladesh, Article 58 (Laws of Bangladesh)
- The Financial Express: Interim government formed on SC nod (10 August 2024)
- Supreme Court of Bangladesh, Appellate Division: Civil Appeal Nos. 112 and 113 of 2025 (judgment of 20 November 2025; full text March 2026)
This guide explains the Constitution for general understanding. It is not legal advice. Constitutional reform proposals under discussion in 2026 are described as proposals until enacted.
Constitutional and writ practice
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