Islami Bank protests enter third day

Protests at Islami Bank PLC entered a third day yesterday as a group of demonstrators, operating under the banner of the Islami Bank Conscious Customers’ Forum, demanded the removal of newly appointed Chairman Md Khurshid Alam.

The protest resumed yesterday morning outside the bank’s headquarters in Motijheel, Dhaka. Demonstrators later held a rally near the National Press Club.

Protesters accused the government and Bangladesh Bank of attempting to return the bank to “looters”, warning that such a move could pose a serious threat to the economy and the banking sector.

On Tuesday, the protesters announced a seven-point charter of demands and said they would continue their demonstrations until those demands were met.

The demands include the resignation of Md Khurshid Alam as chairman; the reinstatement of former Managing Director Omar Faruk Khan; the exclusion from the board of individuals allegedly involved in irregularities; the repeal of Section 18(a) of the Bank Resolution Act; the recovery of funds allegedly siphoned off by S Alam Group through the sale of its assets in Bangladesh; measures to prevent the group’s return to any bank; and exemplary punishment for those responsible for alleged irregularities in the banking sector.

The protesters urged the government to accept their demands, saying the measures were necessary to protect Islami Bank and the country’s financial sector.

Police reinforced security in the area by deploying additional personnel, water cannons and armoured vehicles.

The demonstrations began on Monday, the first working day after the Eid holiday, when the bank’s board had been scheduled to hold a meeting following the appointment of Alam, a former deputy governor of Bangladesh Bank.

At one stage, police used sound grenades and water cannons to disperse protesters, leaving several people injured.

The unrest disrupted the scheduled meeting, and Islami Bank later held a virtual board meeting in the evening, which Alam attended. The board accepted the resignation of former Managing Director Omar Faruk Khan.

Alam’s appointment, made on the eve of the Eid holiday, drew criticism from parts of the banking sector. Critics alleged that his role during the Awami League government’s tenure was controversial, a period when S Alam, a Chattogram-based businessman, gained control of several Shariah-based banks and was linked to large-scale loan irregularities.