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Published : 22 Jun 2025, 12:13 AM
The NBR Reform Unity Council has announced a three-hour pen-down protest for Monday, demanding representation in the newly formed body overseeing the bifurcation of the National Board of Revenue (NBR), and calling for the removal of its chairman.
The council’s President Hasan Mohammad Tarek Rikabder and Secretary General Sehela Siddiqua declared the programme at a press conference at the Revenue Building in Dhaka’s Agargaon on Saturday.
They said, considering the importance of year-end revenue collection and Sunday’s scheduled budget passage, they would avoid tougher action for now.
The protest will run from 9am to 12pm. Officials and staff in Dhaka will stage a sit-in at the NBR headquarters, while officials elsewhere will observe the strike at their offices.
A media statement issued after the briefing read: “At 5pm on the 21st of June, a meeting of representatives from all levels of the Tax, Customs and VAT divisions was held on the ground floor of the Revenue Building.
“At that meeting, a 301-member ad hoc committee of the NBR Reform Unity Council was officially approved, with Hasan Mohammad Tarek Rikabder as president and Sehela Siddiqua as secretary general.”
According to the statement, the platform had earlier submitted a letter on Jun 19 requesting a room to hold a preparatory meeting for a planned seminar titled “What kind of NBR do we want” as part of its broader reform agenda.
No room was reportedly granted, prompting condemnation from the meeting.
“Due to the denial, the meeting was held on the ground floor of the Revenue Building,” it added.
The platform noted that a similar situation occurred on Jun 2, when another meeting had to be held on the same floor after room allocation was denied.
Although a formal request had been submitted to the NBR administration member for a conference room for Thursday’s meeting, no approval was given.
On the same day, the NBR issued an office order forming a six-strong committee of income tax and customs officials to implement the “Revenue Policy and Management Ordinance, 2025”.
The Unity Council demanded proper representation in that committee as well.
In May, after the interim government moved to split the NBR into two separate divisions — Revenue Policy and Revenue Management — by ordinance, employees launched a series of protests, including pen-downs, demanding the move be scrapped.
The caretaker administration later backed off, saying any implementation would involve discussions with NBR staff.
Although employees returned to work, protesters have maintained their call for the resignation of the NBR chief and declared him “unwelcome” at the office.
Later, the chairman returned under tight security provided by the army and law-enforcing agencies.
While he has resumed his duties, tensions with staff remain.
Against this backdrop, the council alleged that their programmes are being sidelined, citing repeated denials of basic logistical support, including space for meetings.
