A new terpolymer ligand involving 2-amino-6-nitro-benzothiazole, melamine, and formaldehyde (BMF) has been synthesized in the presence of dimethyl formamide medium. The BMF ligand was characterized by elemental analysis and various spectral techniques like Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, ultraviolet (UV)-visible spectroscopy, and 1 H & 13 C nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy to elucidate the structure and properties of the terpolymer ligand. The BMF metal complexes were prepared using the BMF ligand with some transition metal ions, such as Cu 2+ , Ni 2+ , and Zn 2+ ions, in the presence of ethanol medium. The prepared complexes have been characterized by elemental analysis and FTIR, electronic, electron spin resonance, and 1 H & 13 C NMR spectral studies. The molecular weight of the BMF ligand and its metal complexes was determined by gel permeation chromatography. The surface features and crystalline behavior of the ligand and its complexes were analyzed by scanning electron microscope (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) methods. Thermal stability of the ligand and its metal complexes was studied by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). Kinetic parameters such as activation energyand order of reaction (n), and thermodynamic parameters namely entropy change, free energy change, apparent entropy, and frequency factor were calculated using Freeman-Carroll, Sharp-Wentworth, and Phadnis-Deshpande (PD) methods. Thermal degradation model of the terpolymer ligand and its metal complexes was also proposed using the PD method. The antibacterial activities of the BMF ligand and its metal complexes were checked against chosen microbes such as Shigella sonnei, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella species, Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus subtilis, and Salmonella typhimurium. C