ACC sues S Alam, Janata Bank officials

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has filed a case against 34 individuals -- including senior Janata Bank officials and top executives linked to trading entities of the S Alam Group -- over alleged loan fraud, abuse of authority, and criminal breach of trust amounting to Tk 19.64 billion.

The complaint, lodged on Sunday by ACC Deputy Director Mohammad Sirajul Haque at the commission's Chattogram District Integrated Office-1, accuses the group of collusion to unlawfully secure loan limits, violate loan conditions, and create excessive funded and non-funded liabilities, ultimately causing substantial losses to the state-owned bank.

According to the FIR, the primary accused include Rashedul Alam, managing director of Global Trading Corporation Ltd, and directors Farzana Begum, Mohammad Abdus Sabur, Md Shahidul Alam, Md Saiful Alam, and Md Osman Gani.

Two inspection-service executives -- Khandaker Robiul Haque and Khandaker Zahirul Haque -- were also named for allegedly facilitating irregularities. A long list of former Janata Bank officials has been implicated, including ex-managing directors, deputy managing directors, general managers, and senior branch-level officers.

Among them are former MD and CEO Md Abdus Salam Azad; former chairman SM Mahfuzur Rahman; and former senior officials Kamran Ahsan, Shahidul Haque, Masfiul Bari, Kamruzzaman Khan, Abdul Jabbar, Tajul Islam, and Ismail Hossain.

The FIR states that the accused approved and renewed loan limits in violation of banking rules and internal guidelines, created irregular Letters of Trust Receipt (LTR) liabilities, and allowed import transactions without mandatory documentation, collateral, or insurance coverage.

LTRs were issued without collecting margin money, without opening separate charge documents for each receipt, and without verifying the arrival of imported goods. In several cases, loans were sanctioned without obtaining non-judicial undertakings or ensuring risk insurance on goods stored in client warehouses.

The borrowers allegedly imported goods through entities linked to their own business group -- a direct breach of loan terms prohibiting related-party transactions.

Mortgaged properties were reportedly overvalued, auxiliary collateral was insufficient, and loan proceeds were diverted through group entities in what the ACC described as transfer and layering of funds.

The irregularities involved both funded and non-funded facilities, including overdue and unauthorised LTR liabilities and failure to deposit proceeds within required timeframes.

ACC officials said the charges cover misconduct dating back to transactions initiated around 2010. A full investigation is under way to determine the total financial losses and trace fund flows. Further legal action will follow evidence collection.

Earlier, in December 2024, Janata Bank filed a separate default suit against two S Alam Group companies involving approximately Tk 19.63 billion.

Over the past 14 years, companies under the S Alam conglomerate reportedly borrowed nearly Tk 97 billion from Janata Bank's corporate branch, of which only a fraction has been repaid.

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