Depositors of 5 merged banks stage protest outside BB office in Ctg, demand withdrawal of 'haircut'

Depositors of five merged Islamic banks staged a protest outside Bangladesh Bank's Chattogram regional office today (13 August), demanding protection of their deposits, restoration of normal banking operations and withdrawal of the proposed "haircut" on their deposits.

The protesters gathered around noon and staged a sit-in, chanting slogans including "I want my money back", "We will not accept haircut", "No more delays over our deposits" and "We will not return home until our legitimate demands are met". 

The programme was organised under the banner of Victim Depositors' Association of Sammilito Islami Bank, Chattogram division.

The protesters said they had been living with uncertainty over their deposits for a long time and demanded that their money be returned and normal banking operations restored as soon as possible. They warned of tougher protests if their demands were not addressed promptly. 

After the protest, a seven-member delegation met officials at the Bangladesh Bank regional office and submitted a memorandum. The delegation included the association's President Md Abul Kalam, General Secretary Jahangir Hossain, Senior Vice-President Jahedul Karim Kochi, vice-presidents Khaled Mosharraf and Sharmin Akter, Finance Secretary Alauddin Azad and Spokesperson Alishah Md Nazmul Hasan. 

Association leaders said Bangladesh Bank officials assured them that there was no reason to worry about the safety of their deposits and that depositors would get their money back.

According to members of the delegation, officials said steps were being taken to restructure the banks. EXIM Bank, Social Islami Bank and First Security Islami Bank have already been merged, while the process of merging Global Islami Bank and Union Bank is also being expedited, the officials said.

The depositors were also told that the finance minister and Bangladesh Bank governor were positive about resolving the issue and that work was progressing quickly, although the overall process would take some time.

Officials also assured the delegation that the memorandum would be forwarded to Bangladesh Bank's headquarters in Dhaka. The association leaders said the managing director of the Chattogram regional office would send it to the central bank's head office along with recommendations.

Sharmin Akter, one of the protesters, said the finance minister had assured them that the problem would be resolved.

"We want that assurance to be implemented. There should be no more uncertainty over our deposits," she said.

A First Security Islami Bank customer, Alauddin Azad, said many depositors depended on profits from their savings to support their families and were now facing severe financial difficulties as returns had declined. 

"We have approached the authorities for the fourth time. Each time, we were asked to wait and assured that action would be taken," he said.

Azad said the issue had also been raised in parliament by reserved-seat lawmaker Rehana Akter, after which the finance minister announced the cancellation of the "haircut" in parliament.

"Nearly two months have passed since then, but we still have not received the notification," he said.

He said deposit returns had fallen from around 12% to 9% or 8%, and in some cases to 5%-6%.

"How are we supposed to survive or run our families on this profit? We kept our hard-earned assets in the bank and used the returns to cover our monthly expenses. Now we cannot even afford our own medical treatment. It has become difficult to pay for the treatment of my 80-year-old mother," he said.

The depositors said they remained hopeful following assurances from the finance minister and Bangladesh Bank governor. However, they demanded that the authorities implement the announced measures quickly, issue the necessary notification and ensure the return of their deposits.