Sheikh Hasina has said the presidium and the central working committee of her Awami League party reflected the opinions of the councillors.

"Many known faces were dropped from the committees in line with the views of the councillors," the prime minister told reporters at the Bangabhaban after the swearing-in ceremony of six new ministers on Friday.

"It was made for the sake of the party," she said, a day after ruling Awami League sprang surprises by axing longtime party heavyweights from the policymaking presidium. "We've arranged the council successfully and within a short time," Hasina said. "The committee has been formed in line with the views of the councillors."

Big guns Amir Hossain Amu, Abdur Razzak, Tofael Ahmed, Suranjit Sengupta and Abdul Jalil were sidelined to the ceremonial 20-strong advisory council apparently for pursuing 'reforms' to curb Hasina's power. Sahara Khatun, Abdul Latif Siddique, Raziuddin Ahmed Razu, Satish Chandra Roy, Obaidul Qader and Yousuf Mohammad Humayun have been included in the new-look presidium.

All the seven organising secretaries of the previous committee failed to make the cut. Saber Hossain Chowdhury, Mukul Bose, Mahmudur Rahman Manna, Akhteruzzaman and Sultan Mohammed Monsur Ahmed, all so-called 'reformists', are the other big names failing to make the cut in the Central Working Committee, the highest executive forum. The new seven organising secretaries are Jahangir Kabir Nanok, Ahmed Hossain, ABM Mozammel Huq, Mesbah Uddin Siraj, AFM Bahauddin Nasim, Abu Sayeed Swopon and Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury.

The party council on July 24 dissolved the old committee, which includes a 15-member presidium, 30 secretaries and 26 members. The AL had unanimously re-elected Hasina as party president for a sixth time during the council and trusted Syed Ashraful Islam as general secretary. Syed Ashraf unveiled the names to the media at a press briefing at the prime minister's official residence on Thursday afternoon.

The council on July 24 tasked Hasina and Ashraf to pick leaders for 45 posts in the central working committee. The constitution vests powers solely on the president to choose 26 of the 73 members of that committee. The councillors in closed-door deliberations endorsed a proposal to empower Hasina and Ashraf to pick 13 other leaders for the party's policymaking presidium, and 31 departmental secretaries.

The new presidium now comprises Hasina, Ashraf, Sayeda Johra Tajuddin, Syeda Sajeda Chowdhury, Mohiuddin Khan Alamgir, Matia Chowdhury, Sheikh Fazlul Karim Selim, Kazi Jafrullah, Abdul Mannan, Ataur Rahman Khan Kaiser, Sahara Khatun, Abdul Latif Siddique, Raziuddin Ahmed Razu, Satish Chandra Roy and Obaidul Qader.