Azad again urges govt to arrest Hall-Mark MD

The government should arrest the Hall-Mark Group Managing Director Tanvir Mahmud for the sake of accountability, FBCCI President AK Azad said yesterday.
The Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry had earlier also urged the government to arrest Tanvir, who took loans worth Tk 2,686 crore from the Ruposhi Bangla branch of Sonali Bank with forged documents.
“It seems that the government has no initiative to arrest Tanvir,” Azad said.
He spoke at a seminar on "improving productivity for efficient production" at Ruposhi Bangla Hotel in Dhaka.
Many real entrepreneurs are not getting bank loans due to such fraudulent activities, he added.
Azad also criticised the government for its failure to supply adequate gas and power to industrial units.
Bangladeshi exporters are losing competitiveness globally due to different anti-business elements, he said.
Many local entrepreneurs are hiring skilled manpower from abroad as the country lacks adequate skilled human resources.
The industries ministry organised the seminar to mark the National Productivity Day.
Industries Minister Dilip Barua called for a warm relationship between owners and workers for better productivity.
Azad had also earlier demanded punishment to those involved in the scam.
Owners of many small industrial units will not be able to pay salaries to their workers as they are facing difficulties from banks after the Hall-Mark scam, Azad said at a programme recently.
He said the government should also take punitive actions against the members of the board of directors of Sonali Bank if they are found guilty after investigation.