Fracas in BB
Bangladesh Bank, the central bank of the country, looks diminutive today after what happened within its precincts on Monday. The rumpus was on a high dare-devilry rating with 40-50 employees storming into GM (admn)'s chamber and ransacking it to a point where he had to duck under the table only to be a sitting target for kicks and punches from the intruders. The GM desperately ran for shelter at the governor's chamber. There he and the Bangladesh Bank governor paid audience to spiteful remarks with a blistering demand shouted at them for their immediate removal from office.
All this was said to be the handiwork of Bangladesh Bank Employees' Association, the vanquished party in the last CBA election which was won by Bangladesh Bank Karmachari Samity with a narrow margin. Although no organisation supporting any political party is legally allowed to function in Bangladesh Bank, some reports suggested that the incumbent Karmachari Samity has had a pro-BNP image while its rival Employees Association has been known for its leanings toward the AL. Some leaders of the party which had lost the election demanded transfer of a few key officials allegedly responsible for victimising their supporters. The GM apparently refused to concede this angering them a good deal. Some observers even tend to look at it as part of a scheme plotted outside the bank to exert pressure on the governor lest he took some decisions which were on the anvil.
If it is a case of rivalry between the election winner and the loser then it needs to be addressed by utmost neutrality in the administration and by reminding all concerned that they are debarred from showing off any clout of national political parties, overtly or covertly, according to BB rules. We would like to see deterrent action taken on the culprits and an uncovering done of the machinations behind the outburst, if any. This looked like a tall order for the 3-member inquiry committee headed by Harinarayan Majumder, an executive director of Bangladesh Bank, especially when he was given 24 hours to file the report. Nothing like solving the problem internally, but if need be, expert trouble-shooting advice should be sought from the finance ministry without hesitation. At all events, we want discipline restored to Bangladesh Bank. It cannot afford its institutional efficiency and prestige, as the central bank of the country, to be playthings for the union leaders, past or present.
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