Factions feud over control of Bangladesh Economic Association

A power dispute has erupted within the Bangladesh Economic Association, with two factions claiming legitimacy and engaging in a public disagreement.

One group, calling itself an ad hoc committee, has alleged that the previous committee, led by Qazi Kholiquzzaman Ahmad, had collaborated with former prime minister Sheikh Hasina and her party, the Awami League. 

The ad hoc committee says that the previous committee had expressed solidarity with Hasina's policies, including her alleged support for genocide, during a meeting on 3 August.

The general secretary of the previous committee, Md Aynul Islam, has vehemently denied these allegations. He recently told the media that the ad hoc committee's formation was illegal and undemocratic, as the previous committee had won the most recent elections in May 2024. Aynul Islam also claimed that the allegations against the committee were baseless and politically motivated.

The ad hoc committee called a press briefing at 11:00am today. By 11:20am, both factions reached the spot and engaged in a heated argument. The army was called in to restore order. Later, the ad hoc committee's president, Mohammad Azizur Rahman, delivered a written statement.

He said after Sheikh Hasina's fall, active members of the anti-discrimination movement demanded the resignation of the leaders of the Bangladesh Economic Association.

Under pressure from the movement, the previous committee leaders initially announced they would resign within seven days but instead closed the association's office indefinitely and left, Azizur Rahman said. 

"In response, on 2 October, two months later, anti-discrimination economists formed a new ad hoc committee. The purpose of the committee is to organise a fair election involving all members," he said.

He said on 29 October, at around 9:00am, a group of approximately 15 people, including seven members of the former committee and several banned Chhatra League operatives, forcibly entered the association's office. They detained the office assistant, Nahid Islam, and took his mobile phone, along with keys to all rooms and the main gate, he said. 

"The group seized all the keys, filled two sacks with association documents and cash, and left, placing new locks on all doors and gates," Azizur Rahman said.

In the May election of the association, 27 out of 28 candidates from the panel led by Kholiquzzaman were elected.

The ad hoc committee president said the election held under the banned committee on 17-18 May 2024 was a "mockery." Of approximately 8,500 eligible voters, only 800 participated.

"During Hasina's regime, the Bangladesh Economic Association was turned into an affiliate of the Awami League. The association's leaders leveraged their positions and the organisation's reputation to secure roles as chairpersons and directors in various banks," said Azizur Rahman.

He said, "Abul Barkat [a former president of the association] is the founder of fundamentalist and extremist economics. He received crores of taka from various government agencies to discover extremism and fundamentalism in Bangladesh."

Azizur Rahman went on to say, "Qazi Kholiquzzaman Ahmed, Abul Barkat, Md Aynul Islam, Jamal Uddin Ahmed, and Hannanah Begum transformed the institution into a partisan organisation.

"They engaged in providing loans to unscrupulous businessmen as bank chairpersons, facilitating money laundering abroad, and changing ownership of banks, which led to the destruction of sharia-based banks through nefarious practices.

"Abul Barkat, who served as the chairman of Janata Bank for an extended period, consciously led the bank to ruin by issuing thousands of crore of taka in defaulted loans. Former finance minister AMA Muhith had mentioned his irregularities on several occasions."

The ad hoc committee president also said Jamal Uddin Ahmed, who was vice-president of the Bangladesh Economic Association and became chairman of the same bank, also contributed to the further destruction of Janata Bank by issuing additional defaulted loans.

Before the national elections, Barkat, Aynul, and Kholiquzzaman published a so-called research report under the banner of the Bangladesh Economic Association, predicting that the Awami League would win 273 seats in the elections, said Azizur Rahman.

Economist Mahbub Ullah, who was present at the press conference, said, "I am a permanent member of this organisation, yet I have not attended even once in the last 20 years. I believe that attending this institution would mean endorsing their unethical activities."

He added, "I believe that all the data and results announced by this committee over the past 15 years have been misinformation.

"Abul Barkat presented data for temporal and specific purposes. I hope the ad hoc committee will organise an acceptable election on time."