The Palli Sanchay Bank issued a district-wise recruitment circular to enroll manpower for the bank. The number of positions to be filled in each district has been specified, and the recruitment process is to follow these quotas.
However, former Managing Director Sheikh Md. Jaminur Rahman, who was recently dismissed from the bank, executed the recruitment without following proper procedures.
Senior system analyst of the bank Shahed Alamgir and system analyst Allama Mohammad Yahya Tanhar, known to be close associates of Rahman, assisted him in the illegal recruitment process.
The complaint against Sheikh Md. Jaminur Rahman was that he accepted money in exchange for recruitment. He allegedly appointed more people than allocated in various districts in exchange of receiving large sums.
The South Asian Times obtained recruitment papers revealing this over-appointment in several districts.
An analysis of the recruitment papers reveals irregularities in several divisions, including Dhaka, Mymensingh, Chattogram, Rajshahi, Rangpur, Khulna, Barishal, and Sylhet.
For instance, Munshiganj was allocated 3 positions but 4 people were hired, while Faridpur had 6 hires against a quota of 4. Other discrepancies include: Gopalganj (10 vs 1), Rajbari (8 vs 3), Kishoreganj (10 vs 8), Tangail (13 vs 9), and Mymensingh (18 vs 15).
In Narail, 3 people were appointed instead of 1, and in Bagerhat, 4 were hired against a quota of 3. Similar discrepancies were found in Kushtia (8 vs 6), Meherpur (2 vs 1), Barisal (7 vs 3), Bhola (7 vs 3), Pirojpur (2 vs 4), Barguna (2 vs 3), and Habiganj, where 6 were hired against a quota of 10.
Similarly, over-appointments were found in Sherpur, Cumilla, Sirajganj, Bogura, and many other districts.
Allegations surfaced that the bank authorities manipulated the entry tests. They did not allow some of the candidates to qualify for the exam as they receive large amount of money from others. Even some candidates were not invited for viva despite qualifying the test.
Sheikh Md. Jaminur Rahman is alleged to have personally ensured the failure of certain candidates. He also reportedly awarded jobs to candidates with low exam scores in exchange for bribes, pocketing the money himself. At the time, Akram-al-Hossain, the former chairman of the bank's board of directors, ignored concerns from bank officials about these irregularities.
A senior bank official, speaking to The South Asian Times on condition of anonymity, said, “Sheikh Md. Jaminur Rahman enriched himself through rule violations and irregularities. Despite widespread knowledge of his misconduct, no one spoke out”.
The official added, “He made a fortune from the recruitment business. In cases where 5 people were to be appointed, he selected only 3, replacing the others with candidates from different districts who paid higher bribes. To receive Awami League favor, he made additional irregular appointments in Gopalganj”.
Bangladesh Bank has formed a five-member investigation committee to look into various irregularities at Palli Sanchay Bank. The committee is led by Sajjad Hossain, an additional director of the central bank. The investigation is underway.
Meanwhile, bank officials have filed a complaint with the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC), but the ACC has yet to begin the investigation