Govt won’t interfere in Islami Bank: Muhith

Finance Minister AMA Muhith today said that the government will not interfere in the prevailing “administrative crisis” of Islami Bank Bangladesh Ltd.

The minister came up with the remark this afternoon at his office at the Secretariat in Dhaka amid prevailing feud between director and deputy director of the private commercial bank.

“A competent chairman has been appointed there. He will be able to run the bank smoothly,” Muhith told reporters.

He, however, said the government will interfere if Islamic Development Bank (IDB), which owns a major share of the bank, lodges a complaint.

The internal feud among the directors of the bank came four months after a major change had been made to the board.

Earlier on May 11, Syed Ahsanul Alam, vice-chairman and an independent director of the bank, on his Facebook page wrote that he was under pressure from some groups to resign from the post.

Following the post, Arastoo Khan, the chairman of the bank, on May 18, alleged that the bank's Vice-Chairman Syed Ahsanul Alam violated his oath of office by spreading propaganda about the bank.

Alam gave wrong information to the media about the Zakat fund, scholarships and Iftar expenditure, Arastoo said at a press conference.

The prevailing division was created within the board of directors following the “blame game” between them.

In the latest incident, a group of the bank directors decided to step down if any of them has to resign under duress. Seven directors of the private commercial bank issued a press release in this regard on May 21.