Syed Refaat Ahmed was sworn in as the new Chief Justice of Bangladesh, a day after his predecessor Obaidul Hassan stepped down from the position. Hassan's resignation came amidst massive street protests by the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement, who had issued an ultimatum for him and other judges of the Appellate Division to resign.

The protesters had demanded a revamp of the judiciary, and Hassan, along with five other judges, tendered their resignations on Saturday, just five days after the fall of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's regime.

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Ahmed took the oath of office as the 25th Chief Justice of Bangladesh during a ceremony at the Darbar Hall of the President's official residence. The oath was administered by President Mohammed Shahabuddin, in the presence of Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus, who had been sworn in as the head of an interim government following Hasina's ouster.

Earlier, several top officials in Bangladesh including the Vice-Chancellor of Dhaka University, Professor Dr Maksud Kamal, and the Director General of Bangla Academy, Professor Dr Md Harun-Ur-Rashid Askari, had also stepped down from their positions in response to the ongoing protests.

The 76-year-old Sheikh Hasina has been in New Delhi since Monday after resigning as Prime Minister. She fled the country amid massive public anger over her government's controversial quota system reserving 30 per cent of jobs for families of veterans who fought the 1971 liberation war. More than 400 people have been killed in the protests.