Police uniforms are being reverted to their previous design featuring a combination of dark blue and light olive colours. But trousers for all police personnel will be khaki in colour. Police Headquarters published a gazette notification regarding the change on Thursday.

Personnel serving in district and other police units will wear dark blue shirts, while all metropolitan police member units will wear light olive shirts, according to the gazette signed by Inspector General of Police (IGP) Md Ali Hossain Fakir. Khaki trousers will be standard for all police personnel. But members of the Armed Police Battalion (APBn), Special Security and Protection Battalion (SPBn), Special Branch (SB), Criminal Investigation Department (CID), and Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) will remain exempt from the change, meaning their uniforms will remain unchanged.

Following the fall of the Awami League government on August 5, 2024, during the July mass uprising, calls for reforms within the police force emerged. Some groups also demanded changes to police uniforms. In that context, the Advisory Council Committee on Law and Order decided on January 20 last year to introduce a new uniform design. An iron-grey uniform was subsequently selected for all police members, and police personnel officially began wearing the new uniform on November 25 last year.

But the new uniform received mixed reactions, including among police personnel themselves. Many police members could not accept the change in uniform and questioned the colour choice, arguing that the uniform was not visually comfortable. They also expressed discomfort over the widespread criticism and online trolling it attracted on social media.

After the BNP-led government assumed office on February 17, the Police Service Association requested on February 24 that the decision to change the police uniform be reconsidered.

In a statement, the association said that the interim government’s chosen uniform failed to take into account the complexion of police personnel, the country’s climate, and the opinions of force members. It also argued that the uniform was selected without any public consultation and closely resembled the attire of other uniformed agencies. Consequently, identifying police personnel in the field had become difficult. According to the association, the majority of police members did not support the hastily implemented change.