Staff Correspondent

Md Abdur Rahman Khan, secretary of the Financial Institutions Division, has been appointed as the secretary of the Internal Resources Division and chairman of the National Board of Revenue or NBR.

The Ministry of Public Administration confirmed the hiring in a notification on Wednesday afternoon, transferring him to his new role.

The order will come into effect immediately in public interest, the notification said.

In a separate notification issued the same day, the government ended the contract-based appointment of Abu Hena Md Rahmatul Muneem, who was serving as the senior secretary of the Internal Resources Division and NBR chief.

Earlier, on Wednesday, NBR officials and employees staged protests demanding the resignation of the NBR chairman.

The protests escalated, with workers setting a 24-hour deadline on Monday for his resignation.

They also warned of a countrywide strike at value-added tax or VAT commission rate, customs houses, and tax regions if the chairman did not step down by Wednesday.

However, the chairman did not resign, prompting further protests on Wednesday.

The government eventually terminated his contract.

In addition to demanding the resignation of the chairman, long-deprived officials and employees also called for an end to appointments from the administration cadre on deputation to the NBR.

Despite this demand, the government has appointed Khan, who is from the 13th Bangladesh Civil Service Taxation Cadre, as the new NBR chief.

Khan joined the cadre service on Apr 25, 1994, and has served in various capacities within the tax administration.

As a taxation cadre officer, Khan has held roles such as joint commissioner, director of the BCS Tax Academy, and first secretary of the NBR.

He has also served as deputy secretary and joint secretary in the Internal Resources Division, as well as additional secretary in the Finance Division.

Khan is a professional accountant with a Fellow Certified Management Accountant, or FCMA, degree in Cost and Management Accounting.

He has also served as the president of the Institute of Cost and Management Accountants of Bangladesh, or ICMAB, for a long period.