BNP wants finance minister, governor to resign over Bangladesh Bank funds theft

The BNP has blamed Finance Minister AMA Muhith and Bangladesh Bank Governor Atiur Rahman for the theft of central bank money from its account in the US and demanded their resignations.

Senior Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 11 March 2016, 03:41 PM
Updated : 14 March 2016, 04:45 PM

Addressing a press conference in Dhaka on Friday, party Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi said, “The finance minister and the Bangladesh Bank governor are responsible for destroying the country’s economy.”
 
“Do they have the right to continue with the responsibilities even after the theft of Tk 8 billion through hacking? We demand their immediate resignations,” he said.
 
Rizvi also demanded that those involved in stealing money from different banks, including the central bank, be identified and tried.
 
Hackers breached the Bangladesh Bank’s account with the Federal Reserve Bank and stole over $100 million early last month.
 
The incident came to light after the Philippine Daily Inquirer published a report on the theft.
 
The BNP leader termed the fund theft the most ‘loathsome forgery’ in Bangladesh’s history.
 
“Countrymen believe that such a big forgery can no way take place without the involvement of people in the government,” he said.
 
“Though unbelievable, but it is the fact that Bangladesh Bank’s money is now flying in casinos in the Philippines,” he added.
 
Rizvi said incidents of forgery and misappropriation increased as ministers, advisors to the prime ministers, ruling party leaders and other big shots, suspected to be involved in several financial scams, were not brought to book.

In another programme, BNP acting Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir demanded explanation from Governor Atiur over the heist.

“The governor went to India without giving any explanation. The nation demands a proper explanation from him,” he said.

He also asked Muhith and Atiur to resign on ‘moral grounds’.