Continued speculations for several months over an impending reshuffle of the cabinet have left several senior ministers and some junior ministers wary.

A number of sources said the 60-member jumbo cabinet with its present composition may sit for the last time today as many cabinet members may face the axe, while some fresh faces may be drafted in.

But the size of the current 60-member council of ministers will definitely be trimmed, maybe to 45 to 50 members.

Highly placed sources said

Prime Minister Khaleda Zia received resignation letters from four cabinet ministers, 11 state ministers and one deputy minister in August last year due to unsatisfactory performance and various allegations against them.

These members are already fearful of losing their portfolio. Some junior ministers are also keeping their fingers crossed. But the list may now be changed as a few of them have succeeded to have their names crossed off from the axe list.

As a result, sources at the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) said, some more cabinet and state ministers might also be asked to submit

resignation letters because of their reported involvement in various scandals. Besides, portfolio of several ministers and state ministers would be changed with the arrival of a few new faces.

Sources said the prime minister has also planned to change the portfolios of several cabinet ministers and state ministers. The home, environment and forest, foreign, shipping, post and telecommunications, food, fisheries and livestock, energy and mineral resources and jute ministries may see new faces.

Dhaka Mayor Sadeque Hossain

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Khoka, who is also fisheries and livestock minister, will relinquish his ministerial portfolio. There is a speculation that the prime minister herself will take over the Ministry of Home the state minister for home will retain his job.

The prime minister has gathered information from her senior colleagues and different intelligence agencies about the performance and activities of all the ministers before deciding to bring major changes to her cabinet.

Official sources said as the rumble of reshuffle is once again being heard in the last few days, work at the Bangladesh Secretariat has almost come to a standstill. Even the routine works are getting affected.

The ministers and the state ministers, whose resignation letters were received by the premier in August, are not concentrating on their job knowing that their days are numbered.

According to sources, the panicky ministers and state ministers

are jockeying with the PMO, the Hawa Bhaban, senior ministers and influential party leaders.

Several policymakers of the ruling BNP said an immediate reshuffle in the cabinet is needed as the prime minister has already collected the resignation letters of over a dozen ministers.

Sources at the PMO hinted that the cabinet reshuffle might take place any time.

BNP policymakers and influential cabinet ministers said most state and deputy ministers under them have now become a burden since they 'create trouble' instead of easing administrative hassles.

They said the junior ministers are apparently forcing the officials to initiate note as they wish, and in many cases they are also misbehaving with senior officials. Most cabinet ministers and policymakers feel there is no need to keep 28 state ministers.

Sources however, said that the BNP hardliner would dominate the cabinet after the possible reshuffle.