Janata Bank, a state-owned financial institution currently teetering on the edge of an existential crisis, has ignited a firestorm by waiving 22.58 crore Taka (approx. £1.4 million) in interest for a company owned by Mirza Faisal Amin. Amin is the President of the Thakurgaon District BNP and the younger brother of the party’s Secretary General, Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir.
The decision has drawn sharp criticism due to the “abnormal speed” of the approval process—settled within just one week of the application—at a time when the bank is grappling with a staggering 73.18% default rate on its total loan portfolio.
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A “Dead Project” Resurrected
Records indicate that Amin’s firm, Nischintapur Agro Industries Ltd, first secured loans two decades ago. Despite failing to repay these initial debts, the company managed to secure an additional 11 crore Taka during the Awami League’s tenure in 2010 under a rescheduling agreement.
However, a physical inspection report by Janata Bank reveals that the factory, located in Thakurgaon, has been a “dead project” for 17 years. Local residents confirmed that operations ceased in 2011 after the mixed-fertiliser plant failed to find a market. Following the political transition on 5 August 2024, Amin applied for the waiver, claiming the project was stifled by “political victimisation” and a lack of electricity. This claim is contested by the fact that the company received significant loan benefits during the very regime it claims persecuted it.
Financial Breakdown of the Waiver and Bank Status
| Category | Details / Amount |
| Total Outstanding Debt (Nischintapur Agro) | 44.94 Crore Taka |
| Waived Amount (Interest/Penalties) | 22.58 Crore Taka |
| Janata Bank Total Defaulted Loans | 70,671 Crore Taka |
| Bank’s Overall Default Rate | 73.18% |
| Provision Shortfall | 48,031 Crore Taka |
Regulatory Circumvention Alleged
Beyond the fiscal loss, senior bankers have raised alarms over the classification of the loan. Despite nearly two decades of non-payment, the bank’s board—chaired by Muh. Fazlur Rahman, who coincidentally served as a director when the initial loans were approved in 2006—proposed classifying the loan as a Special Mention Account (SMA) rather than “Defaulted.” This reclassification in the Credit Information Bureau (CIB) report effectively hides the bank’s true financial risk and bypasses standard provisioning requirements.
A Bank in Peril
Janata Bank’s generosity comes amidst dire financial health. The institution is currently “hostage” to nine major industrial groups, with defaulted loans totaling over 54,000 crore Taka attributed to just these top borrowers.
While the bank’s Managing Director, Md. Mujibur Rahman, insists the waiver follows Bangladesh Bank circulars aimed at “speedy recovery,” critics argue that such leniency for politically connected individuals sends a demoralising message to honest borrowers. They contend that a bank suffering from a massive liquidity crisis and capital erosion cannot afford to forgive such vast sums, especially when the “repayment” that triggered the waiver—1.4 crore Taka—appeared suddenly after 17 years of silence.