Zia Ahmed, a retired major general from the Bangladesh army's Signals Corps, was reappointed on Monday as chairman of the Bangladesh Telecom Regulatory Commission for another year.
Ahmed was made BTRC chief in February 2009 and completed his three-year tenure on Thursday.
An official announcement to this effect was made on Monday after prime minister Sheikh Hasina gave her formal clearance the day before.
A highly-placed PMO source said the other names that had come up for consideration included current vice chairman Giasuddin Ahmed, a retired civil servant.
Zia Ahmed was sent into retirement during the BNP-Jamaat regime as a brigadier general but got promoted to major general with retrospective effect after the Awami League government returned to power in 2009.
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The benchmark index of Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) rose sharply in the first half of trading on Tuesday.
DSE general index increased to 4637.16 points, gaining 115.83 points or 2.56 percent at 1pm.
Shares and mutual funds worth Tk 3.06 billion changed hands until then, with prices of 231 issues advancing, 12 declining and 12 remaining unchanged.
The index rose to 4645.90 points with a gain of 124.57 points or 2.75 percent at 12:08pm.
After posting a rise of 174.72 points or 4 percent to 4542.53 points on Sunday, the DGEN shed 21.20 points, or 0.47 percent, on Monday to 4521.33 points.
The general index had closed the week at 4367.81 points on Thursday, a day after a committee recommended waiver of up to 50 percent interest on margin loans taken by small investors.
The previous week saw the benchmark index gaining on the last two days of trading, a 121.5-point rise on Thursday and a 62.78 point rise the day before.
The gains helped tide over losses it experienced earlier in the week, losing 30.96 points on Monday and 44.56 points on Sunday. At the end of the week, 108.76 points were added to DGEN.
The index has been steadily gaining over the two weeks before that with a 245-point gain in the week between Feb 12 and Feb 16 and a 165-point gain in the week before that (Feb 5-Feb 9).
In a stunning reversal of its previous decision, the governing body of the Bangladesh Premier League early on Tuesday said Barisal Burners – not Chittagong Kings – will play the second semifinal against table toppers Duronto Rajshahi as the fourth team.
The governing body took the decision at a 2am meeting with the technical committee .The authorities in a press statement made it clear that Barisal were through and the previous declaration that Chittagong Kings had qualified for the semis would stand void.
It had been announced initially on Sunday that Barisal Burners were through to the semifinals riding on the net run-rate after their dramatic victory against the Kings. And Chittagong, Khulna Royal Bengals and Dhaka Gladiators were left to fight it out among themselves for the remaining two spots.
On Monday, Dhaka Gladiators lost to Duronto Rajshahi by a narrow margin and Khulna Royal Bengals thrashed Sylhet Royals and the results put Khulna in the second place with 12 points, leaving Dhaka, Barisal and Chittagong tied on 10 points.
But in the head-to-head results, Dhaka had a superior net run rate and qualified for the semifinals taking third place, having beaten Barisal Burners twice and Chittagong Kings once. It meant Chittagong Kings and Barisal Burners were to fight for the fourth spot.
Chittagong Kings had two wins, against Barisal Burners and Dhaka Gladiators, while Barisal had only one, against Chittagong. But, Barisal's net run-rate was superior to Chittagong's.
Chittagong Kings at a press conference at Ruposhi Bangla Hotel late in the morning said they would challenge the latest BPL governing body's decision in court.
The late night meeting ruled that Duronto Rajshahi (14 points) and Khulna Royal Bengals (12 points) finished top two on points and qualified for the semis as the first and second placed teams.
The drama began to unfold on Monday afternoon when BPL governing council president Gazi Ashraf Hossain Lipu announced that Barisal Burners were left out following the head-to-head results and Chittagong were in the semi-finals, apparently on the basis of a better head-to-head record in the three-way tie on 10 points, which included Dhaka.
But the BPL statement in the wee hours of Monday said that Barisal would be the fourth semi-finalists – understandably because their head-to-head record with Chittagong was tied and they had a better net run rate.
The press statement said the governing body and the technical committee "sincerely regret any misunderstanding that may have risen regarding this issue".
Just two hours before the first semifinal is set to start on Tuesday, Chittagong Kings said they will move court over the BPL authorities' decision to allow Barisal Burnerst to play Duronto Rajshahi in the second semifinals.
Samir Quader Chowdhury, CEO of SQ Sports, which owns the Kings, told a media conference about the decision of the team. Coach Khaled Mahmud and manager Nasir Ahmed were present there.
Shafiqul Haque Heera and Faruque Ahmed, the managers of semifinalists Dhaka Gladiators and Duronto Rajshahi, respectively, and Khulna Royal Bengals media manager Jahid Razzaq Masum were also present in the conference.
Dhaka's Heera said his team will support the Kings if they were thrown out illegally.
Faruque of Rajshahi said they will also back the Kings if they were dropped unlawfully. He, however, added they are not abandoning the first semifinal against the Burners at 2pm.