Agitating depositors of Islami Bank Bangladesh PLC under the banner of “Islami Bank Sachetan Grahak Forum” (Conscious Depositors' Forum) on Tuesday vowed to continue their protest until their seven-point demand, including the resignation of newly appointed Chairman Md Khurshid Alam, is realised.
At a press conference held in front of the Islami Bank Tower at Dilkusha in the capital, they announced a rally for tomorrow (Wednesday) at Dilkusha at 11:00am to press for their demands.
Speaking at the press conference, Convener of “Sachetan Grahak Forum” Nur-Un-Nabi said they sent the list of their demands to Bangladesh Bank Governor Md Mostaqur Rahman for immediate execution.
The agitating depositors continued their sit-in programme in front of the bank's head office for the second consecutive day on Tuesday.
The other demands are reinstatement of Omar Faruk Khan to the post of managing director, exclusion of anyone linked to past financial plundering from the bank’s Board of Directors, repeal of Section 18(A) of the Bank Resolution Act, recovery of looted funds by liquidating the seized domestic assets and ownership stakes held by the controversial S Alam Group, implementing legal barriers to ensure S Alam Group can never regain control of Islami Bank or any other financial institution, and bringing all individuals involved in looting Islami Bank and the wider banking sector to justice with exemplary punishment.
The leadership crisis at Islami Bank intensified on the final working day before the Eid holidays when the central bank-appointed independent director and then-chairman M Zubaidur Rahman abruptly resigned.
Hours later, at around 9:00pm that night, Bangladesh Bank appointed its former Deputy Governor Md Khurshid Alam as the new chairman of the bank.
Khurshid Alam previously stepped down from his deputy governor post following the fall of the Awami League government on August 5, 2024.
At the press conference, the forum leaders strongly condemned recent remarks made by Bangladesh Bank Spokesperson Arief Hossain Khan, labelling his statements as "deeply political and incorrect."
On Monday, Arief Hossain told reporters that members of a specific political party were instigating instability surrounding Islami Bank, asserting that central bank decisions will not be altered by street protests.
Reacting sharply to the remark, the agitating depositors said such a political statement coming from a responsible official of the regulatory body is highly unfortunate.
Describing them as genuine depositors, they said they took to the streets to place their legitimate demands solely under their identity as clients.