The Islami Bank Customer Forum staged a human chain demonstration today (Sunday) demanding the cancellation of "illegal appointments" made when it was controlled by the S. Alam Group, and protesting the "monopolistic control" exercised by the group in the broader banking sector.
The demonstration, held in front of the Islami Bank Tower in Dilkusha of the city's commercial quarter, called for the cancellation of illegitimate appointments made in the bank’s Chittagong branches from 2017 to 2024, allegedly under the influence of the S. Alam Group who held a controlling stake in the bank during that period.
Speakers at the rally also demanded that the bank ensure the recruitment of honest and qualified candidates based on merit from across the country.
Business leaders Shahin Ahmed Khan, Md Motasim Billah, Md Delwar Hossain, Md Imam Hossain, Advocate Waliullah, Hafizur Rahman, and DM Shawkat Ali addressed the rally.
Simultaneously, the Conscious Professionals Group, Islami Bank CBA, and the Conscious Bankers Society held separate human chains and protest programs with the same demands.
Speakers alleged that after the S. Alam Group took control of Islami Bank, it illegally appointed 8340 individuals to various positions from 2017 up to August 2024, primarily from the Chittagong region. They specifically claimed that over 4,500 of these appointees were from Patiya Upazila.
They asserted that favouring the candidates from a single district while neglecting applicants from the country's other 63 districts has led to a breakdown in the bank's service quality and administrative discipline.
"Most of these appointed staff are unprofessional, incapable of providing quality service, and often use regional dialects, creating significant communication problems for customers," one speaker remarked, adding that the bank cannot be run this way. The speakers demanded the immediate cancellation of these illegal appointments and the guaranteed hiring of merit-based candidates nationwide.
The demonstration also highlighted a recent move by Islami Bank to evaluate the qualifications of the allegedly illegally appointed staff.
The bank on September 27 arranged an assessment test through the Institute of Business Administration (IBA) of Dhaka University. Although 5,385 officials were called for the test, only 414 participated.
Due to the mass non-participation, the bank authority reportedly placed the remaining 4,971 officials on OSD (Officer on Special Duty) status, with reports suggesting that 400 of them have been terminated. They have been instructed to refrain from all banking activities until further notice.
Speakers warned that if the alleged "bank looter S. Alam" and his unqualified appointees are not removed, customers will turn away from Islami Bank one by one.