State of banking sector irks AD

The Appellate Division on Tuesday expressed its dissatisfaction about the state of the banking sector as heard from Bangladesh Bank former deputy governor Khondokar Ibrahim Khaled.

A four-judge bench chaired by Chief Justice Syed Mahmud Hossain heard Ibrahim Khaled during a hearing in an appeal filed by International Leasing and Financial Services Limited seeking stay on a HC’s directive that had directed the police to freeze bank accounts of the company directors and also seize their passports for their alleged involvement in embezzling around Tk 3,500 crore by the company’s former director PK Haldar.

The bench also set today to deliver its order on the ILFSL’s appeal against HC’s directive.

Khondokar Ibrahim Khaled, during the hearing, told the court that the financial institutions of the country were in a very bad condition whatever the government was saying about the nonbanking sector.

He also told the court that the Bangladesh Bank did not order action against the withdrawal of loan of Tk 1,596 crore by PK Halder and its cohorts despite the central bank in its report found anomalies over granting the loan. 

Ibrahim Khaled also said that there was no possibility of recovery of the loan as it is still traceless and could not be known whether or not the money was siphoned off abroad.

He, however, recommended appointment of an agent to recover the money.

Bangladesh Bank executive director Shah Alam told the court that the company had withdrew about Tk 450 crore illegally.

The court astonished when it heard that proper action was not taken in this regard.

The court wanted to know from Shah Alam that what the central bank did when PK Haldar took away Tk 3,500 crore from the bank.

Shah Alam said that it was still possible to reconstruct ILFSL, while Ibrahim Khaled said it would be difficult to reconstruct the institution until Bangladesh Bank takes any scheme in this regard.

In January, the HC directed the BB and all the private banks to seize bank accounts of the 11 shareholder directors and the top executives of ILFSL.

The HC also directed the home secretary and the IGP to seize passports of the 11 directors of ILFSL to stop them from leaving the country.

The HC also directed BB to appoint Ibrahim Khaled as chairman and independent director of ILFSL replacing present chairman MA Hashem.

The directives were issued after hearing a company writ petition filed by two clients of ILFSL in December 2019 seeking winding up ILFSL.

The two petitioners had crores of Taka as fixed deposit with the ILFSL.

After maturity of the fixed deposits, the petitioners applied to cash out their money but the ILFSL informed them that it had no ability to pay their money.

Ahsanul Karim appeared for ILFSL and attorney general Mahbubey Alam for the state.

News Courtesy: www.newagebd.net