Islami Bank MD sent on 1.5-month leave

Islami Bank Bangladesh PLC has sent its Managing Director, Md Omar Faruk Khan, on leave for more than one and a half months.

The decision was taken at a meeting of the board of directors of the country’s largest shariah-based lender yesterday.

Md Altaf Hossain, an additional managing director, will serve as acting managing director during Khan’s absence.

Several senior officials of the bank, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Khan had initially sought leave from April 28 to May 21 to visit his son in the United States.

However, the board approved leave from April 13 to May 31, which is a significantly longer period than requested, they added.

“I cannot say why I was granted leave for such a long period. I had requested leave starting from April 28,” Khan told The Daily Star.

Khan was appointed as the managing director of Islami Bank on August 3 last year.

Prior to that, he had been serving as acting MD following the removal of former managing director Mohammed Monirul Moula in April last year over allegations of irregularities and fraud.

M Zubaidur Rahman, chairman of the bank, could not be reached for comment despite repeated attempts. Earlier last month, Bangladesh Bank removed Md Abdul Jalil, an independent director and chairman of Islami Bank’s executive committee.

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.