Tensions escalate as demonstrators storm IDRA office

Business Report :

Around 300 officials of Sonali Life Insurance staged a demonstration in front of the office of the Insurance Development and Regulatory Authority (IDRA) on Tuesday before storming the office and creating a frightening situation.

It was the third time that Sonali’s employees agitated outside the regulator’s office since August 11, when protesters hurled abusive words at IDRA Chairman Mohammad Jainul Bari.

The demands were largely the same on Tuesday as corruption allegations were brought against Bari and his resignation was sought.

An IDRA official told that protestors had confined the chairman and around 50 officials at the IDRA.
He added that other officials were also stuck. “We have been confined to our office for five hours. Work has come to a standstill,” the official added.

Chanting slogans on the IDRA premises, the protestors also demanded the withdrawal of the administrator that was appointed by the IDRA to improve Sonali Life’s condition.

Another official of the IDRA said all vehicles that had left since the afternoon with officers and employees were checked to ensure that the chairman did not escape.

Around evening, after the lift of the IDRA building was shut down, 20-25 individuals came up the stairs and vandalised the main gate of the regulator’s office, the official said.

The volatile situation forced the IDRA administration to call in the army to control the situation, the official added.

More than 300 people began forming a human chain under the IDRA building since 11 am.

IDRA Chairman Bari said: “The employees of Sonali Life vandalised the premises of the IDRA office. One of our officials and a security guard were injured. Initially, it was reported that the guard had suffered a head injury.”
Mohammad Rabiul Hassan Rasel, a manager of Sonali Life, said: “After entering the regulator’s office, some of their officials hit us. As a result, some of our employees were injured.”

He added: “After army officers arrived, we told them that we want justice for this incident. We also want the resignation of the chairman.”

However, he could not provide a clear explanation for the vandalism that had occurred.

In a press release on Tuesday, the Bangladesh Insurance Association (BIA) said some field-level employees of a certain life insurance company had been trying to spoil the normal working environment of the IDRA to destabilise the insurance sector.

“This is not desirable at all. The BIA has called on field-level employees to refrain from such programmes,” it said.
Although the names of all life insurance companies are being mentioned in the sit-in programme, employees from only one life insurance company have been identified, it added.

“The BIA strongly condemns the intentional use of the names of all the insurance companies and urges those concerned to refrain from such activities in the future,” it mentioned.

On August 19, Sonali Life Insurance, IDRA and the Financial Institutions Division of the Ministry of Finance held a meeting at the Secretariat.

After the meeting, FID Secretary Abdur Rahman Khan said the court would decide whether to change Sonali Life’s administrator.

Sonali Life’s former chairman Mostafa Golam Quddus and six of his family members, who were directors of the insurer, embezzled at least Tk 187.84 crore from the company, according to an IDRA report.

The IDRA then appointed Brig Gen (retd) SM Ferdous as administrator of Sonali Life Insurance to improve the company’s health.