Dual protest outside Islami Bank HQ

Several hundred former employees dismissed from six troubled Islamic banks gathered in front of Islami Bank Bangladesh headquarters in Motijheel yesterday morning, demanding reinstatement and the dissolution of the current boards of directors.

Within an hour of the protest, a separate group staged a counter-demonstration under the banner of Islami Bank Customers’ Coordination Council, demanding the arrest of S Alam Group Chairman Mohammed Saiful Alam and the recovery of stolen assets.

The dismissed employees carried banners and festoons identifying themselves as former staff of Islami Bank, First Security Islami Bank, Social Islami Bank, Al-Arafah Islami Bank, Global Islami Bank and Union Bank.

Most of them are reportedly from Chattogram, the home district of Saiful Alam, and were recruited when the banks were under the control of S Alam group.

They were dismissed following the political changeover in August 2024, when allegations surfaced that they were recruited without public job advertisements, competitive examinations or proper verification of academic credentials.

Officials of the banks said the dismissals were carried out in line with the Bangladesh Bank’s advice regarding verification of employees’ academic credentials, followed by assessment tests.

Only those who failed to participate in the evaluation or were found to have submitted forged documents were dismissed, leaving little scope for reinstatement, said the officials.

Meanwhile, the demonstrators under the banner of the Islami Bank Customers’ Coordination Council called for the repeal of a newly added provision to the Bank Resolution Act, alleging that it enables the rehabilitation of “bank looters”.

The provision, Section 18A of the law, allows former shareholders of distressed or merged banks to reclaim ownership under specific conditions.

Nurun Nabi Manik, president of the council, announced a five-point demand, which also includes the immediate arrest of Saiful Alam and other alleged offenders, confiscation of their domestic assets, recovery of laundered funds and prevention of any group from creating unrest on bank premises.

The council warned that the government would be responsible for any untoward situation if alleged associates-dubbed the “Patiya group”-are allowed to regroup.

Contacted, Md Altaf Hossain, acting managing director of Islami Bank, told The Daily Star, “We were informed about the protest of two different groups. Such protests ultimately adversely impact the bank, as these cause panic panic among general customers.”

He also said the reinstatement of dismissed officials is now under judicial process, and the bank has nothing to do at this moment regarding the issue.

After the fall of the Awami League-led government in August 2024, S Alam Group’s control over Islami Bank ended, as Bangladesh Bank dissolved the board of the country’s largest private sector bank, which had been dominated by individuals linked to the conglomerate.

Between 2017 and June this year, the Chattogram-based conglomerate and its associated companies took around 80 percent of the total disbursed loans of Islami Bank Bangladesh.