Chief of Army Staff (Bangladesh)

The Chief of Army Staff (CAS; Bengali: সেনাবাহিনী প্রধান, romanized: Śenabahini Prodhan) is the professional head and highest-ranking commissioned officer of the Bangladesh Army. The Chief of Army Staff is responsible for the overall command, administration, training, and operational preparedness of the army, and serves as the principal military adviser to the Government of Bangladesh on land-based defence and national security matters.

The office is held by an officer with the rank of General and is appointed by the President of Bangladesh on the advice of the Prime Minister of Bangladesh. The Chief of Army Staff is a senior member of the Armed Forces Division and plays a central role in maintaining national defence, internal security support, disaster response, and participation in United Nations peacekeeping operations. The Chief of Army staff has been a four-star rank since 2007. Prior to that, the Chief of Army Staff was a three-star rank from 1978 to 2007. During the liberation war of Bangladesh in 1971, Major general M. A. Rab was the Chief of Staff of the Bangladesh Army under the combined command of Bangladesh Forces which served as the origins of Bangladesh Armed Forces and General M. A. G. Osmani was the Commander-in-Chief. After the War of Independence, Bangladesh Army was officially reverted to the Ministry of Defense in 1972, and major general K. M. Shafiullah was appointed the Chief of Army Staff. The incumbent Chief of Army Staff is general Waker-Uz-Zaman. The office of the Chief of Army Staff functions from the Army Headquarters, which is located in the Dhaka Cantonment.