Staff Correspondent

Islami Bank Shareholders' Forum today (Monday) held nationwide human chains and protest rallies, including in front of the Islami Bank Tower in Dilkusha, Bangla Motor, Mirpur, Uttara of Dhaka, demanding the immediate removal of officials allegedly appointed illegally by S Alam.

Simultaneous demonstrations were also held in front of every Islami Bank branch across the country.

Speakers at the rally alleged that S Alam "illegally seized" Islami Bank in 2017 using state force and intimidated legitimate owners and foreign shareholders into leaving.

Following the alleged takeover, he reportedly appointed thousands of "inefficient people" from the Patiya and Chattogram regions without any public notification, which the speakers claimed has destroyed the bank's reputation and skilled workforce structure.

Forum leaders claimed that between 2017 and August 2024, a total of 7,224 individuals were illegally appointed to the bank, with over 4,500 of them hailing solely from Patiya Upazila. They further alleged that this practice broke bank discipline by favouring candidates from one district while depriving qualified candidates from the country's other 63 districts.

According to the Shareholders’ Forum leaders, these alleged illegal appointments are costing the bank more than Tk 1,500 crore annually.

In a move to assess their competence, bank authorities recently arranged an evaluation test for these officers through the Dhaka University's Institute of Business Administration (IBA) on September 27. However, out of the 5,385 officials called, 4,971 refused to sit for the examination.

The protesting groups stated that those who defied the bank’s decision have been placed on ‘On Special Duty’ (OSD), and approximately 400 "rebel" officers have been terminated from service.

Addressing the rally in front of the head office, speakers including Md Mohtasim Billah, Hafizur Rahman, Imam Hossain, and Mahmudul Hasan said the removal of illegally appointed individuals is not a violation of human rights.

"The true violation of human rights is depriving candidates from 63 districts to favour a select few from a single part of Chattogram," a speaker stated.

They also alleged that S Alam's control led to the forced resignation of older, experienced bank officials through intimidation. An executive, speaking anonymously, claimed that several senior officers were arrested and presented in the media as criminals for refusing to sign "fake investment files."

The protesters warned that if all illegally appointed officials are not removed by next Thursday, they will launch a larger, intensified movement. They called for the recruitment of honest, qualified, and talented candidates through rigorous verification to "save Islami Bank from the grip of mafias."

Other groups, including the Islami Bank Customer Forum, Conscious Businessmen's Forum, Islami Bank Ex-Bankers Council, Anti-Discrimination Job Seekers' Council, Conscious Professionals Group, Islami Bank CBA, and Conscious Banker Society, joined the human chain in solidarity.