<div style="text-align: justify; "><b><span style="font-size: 1rem;">The High Court today ordered the authorities concerned to probe into the much talked about and reported “loan scam” in three banks – Islami Bank, Social Islami Bank Ltd and First Security Islami Bank – and submit the report within next four months.</span><br></b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The HC bench of Justice Md Nazrul Islam Talukder and Justice Khizir Hayat passed the order after issuing a Suo Motu (voluntary) rule following newspaper reports.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The court directed Bangladesh Bank’s Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU), Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) and Bangladesh Police’s Criminal Investigation Department (CID) to submit the probe report.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">At the same time, the court ordered the authorities of these three banks to submit the list of bank officials involved in approving loans worth thousands of crores of taka.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The HC also issued a rule, asking why the inaction of the banks to take action against those responsible for approving loans worth thousands of crores and S Alam Group’s Tk 30,000 loan should not be declared illegal.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The rule also asked why no instructions should be given to take action against those responsible.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Besides, the HC bench asked S Alam Group to explain the newspaper reports that said the company took Tk 30,000 crore from Islami Bank.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The court also set April 5 next year for the hearing and asked to submit the report after verifying the authenticity of the news published.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Advocate Khurshid Alam Khan for ACC and Deputy Attorney General AKM Amin Uddin Manik for the state were present in the court.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">On November 24, a report was published in the daily Prothom Alo stating that an “unscrupulous group” had taken a loan of Tk 2,000 crore from Islami Bank Bangladesh Limited (IBBL) by opening two companies with fake addresses and papers.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">In all, about Tk 7,000 crore loans have been approved from Islami Bank in various ways in the name of eight companies this year.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The maximum amount of loan, Tk 2,460 crore, was withdrawn from November 1 to 17, according to the newspaper report.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">In the same way, the companies have withdrawn Tk 2,320 crore loan from Social Islami Bank Limited (SIBL) and the First Security Islami Bank.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">As a result, the debt of the companies with interest to these three banks has increased to Tk 9,500 crores, it added.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Meanwhile, another report published in the New Age newspaper on November 29 said that S Alam Group alone has taken loan of Tk 30,000 crore from Islami Bank. UNB</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify; ">bnbd24/kh</div>