NSA Dr Khalilur Rahman parries questions on Biman Board appointment

National Security Adviser (NSA) Dr Khalilur Rahman on Monday parried questions regarding reported criticism of his recent appointment as a director of Biman Bangladesh Airlines.

When pressed by a TV journalist about becoming a Biman director while holding the post of NSA, Dr Rahman briefly smiled and said, “There is no Biman anywhere in the world.”

Dr Rahman, who also serves as the High Representative on the Rohingya Issue, earlier held a meeting with Foreign Affairs Adviser Dr Md Touhid Hossain at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA). The details of their discussion could not be immediately known.

A small group of journalists approached Dr Rahman as he was leaving the ministry following the meeting.

Recently, Dr Rahman, Special Assistant to the Chief Adviser on Posts, Telecommunications and Information Technology Faiz Ahmad Taiyeb, and Senior Secretary of the Bangladesh Election Commission Akhtar Ahmed were appointed as directors of Biman Bangladesh Airlines Ltd.

The decision to include them on the airline’s board less than a month ahead of the February-12 election raised questions among insiders in the aviation industry.

Meanwhile, police arrested Biman Bangladesh Airlines Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Dr Md Shafiqur Rahman, his wife and two others from Uttara in connection with a case involving the abuse of a child domestic worker.