HC seeks list of loan-waiver beneficiaries

A High Court (HC) bench yesterday sought a list of people and organisations whose loans had been written off by banks till December 31, 2016.
The Bangladesh Bank (BB) governor has been asked to submit the list within 30 days.
The HC bench also issued a rule asking the government to explain why Sections 28 (1) and 49 (cha) of the Bank Company Act should not be declared illegal.
The secretaries of finance, banking and law, the governor of the Bangladesh Bank, the comptroller- and auditor-general, and the chief of banking operations of the central bank have been asked to reply to the rule.
The HC will again take up the matter on April 2 for further orders.
The bench asked the registrar-general of the Supreme Court to immediately convey its order to the authorities through a special messenger.
Deputy attorney-general SM Moniruzzaman told reporters that apart from these orders, the HC had sought information from the authorities on whether the exempted persons or organisations had taken any loans from other banks.
A HC bench comprising Justice Zubayer Rahman Chowdhury and Justice Iqbal Kabir passed the order.
The authorities had been asked to incorporate the details of loans taken from other banks in the report, he added. 
The HC bench gave the order in a suo moto move following a report headlined ‘The Tk. 30,000cr vanishing trick’, published in an English daily on February 26.
Section 28 (1) says no banking company shall, without the previous approval of the Bangladesh Bank, grant respite of loans taken from it by any of the following persons or institutions: a) any of its directors, and his/her family members; b) a commercial institution or company in which any director of the banking company is interested as landowner, co-director, managing agent; and c) any such person in which any director of the banking company is interested as partner or landowner.
According to the Section 49 (cha), the Bangladesh Bank can order any other bank or company in the greater interest of the rescheduled loan and other reasons related to the loan.

 

HC seeks list of loan-waiver beneficiaries

A High Court (HC) bench yesterday sought a list of people and organisations whose loans had been written off by banks till December 31, 2016. The Bangladesh Bank (BB) governor has been asked to submit the list within 30 days. The HC bench also issued a rule asking the government to explain why Sections 28 (1) and 49 (cha) of the Bank Company Act should not be declared illegal. The secretaries of finance, banking and law, the governor of the Bangladesh Bank, the comptroller- and auditor-general, and the chief of banking operations of the central bank have been asked to reply to the rule. The HC will again take up the matter on April 2 for further orders. The bench asked the registrar-general of the Supreme Court to immediately convey its order to the authorities through a special messenger. Deputy attorney-general SM Moniruzzaman told reporters that apart from these orders, the HC had sought information from the authorities on whether the exempted persons or organisations had taken any loans from other banks. A HC bench comprising Justice Zubayer Rahman Chowdhury and Justice Iqbal Kabir passed the order. The authorities had been asked to incorporate the details of loans taken from other banks in the report, he added. The HC bench gave the order in a suo moto move following a report headlined The Tk. 30,000cr vanishing trick, published in an English daily on February 26. Section 28 (1) says no banking company shall, without the previous approval of the Bangladesh Bank, grant respite of loans taken from it by any of the following persons or institutions: a) any of its directors, and his/her family members; b) a commercial institution or company in which any director of the banking company is interested as landowner, co-director, managing agent; and c) any such person in which any director of the banking company is interested as partner or landowner. According to the Section 49 (cha), the Bangladesh Bank can order any other bank or company in the greater interest of the rescheduled loan and other reasons related to the loan.