Symbolic image.
Special Correspondent //

A part of the money smuggled out of the country in the past 15 and a half years of the ousted Awami League government is now returning to the country in the form of remittances. A part of that money is being used to pressure the government and destabilize the country.

That money is being spent on various sectors including labor unrest, communal incitement, and terrorist activities to create unrest in different parts of the country. The government has taken strict steps to prevent such financing. As part of this, if you want to send remittances to the country through foreign exchange houses, you will have to declare the source of the money. The news is from a relevant source.

According to the Central Bank report, the remittance flow sent by expatriates was decreasing towards the end of the previous government. When the Awami League government fell on August 5, the remittance flow started increasing. In the last month of the previous government, i.e. July, remittances came in at $1.91 billion. Which is 3.30 percent less than the same month of the previous year.

In August, remittances increased to $2.22 billion. Which is 38.54 percent more than the same month of the previous year. In September, it increased further to $2.41 billion. Which is 81.20 percent more than the same month of the previous year. In October, remittances came in at $2.40 billion. Which is 21.5 percent more than the same period of the previous year. In November, remittances decreased slightly to $2.20 billion.

However, it was 14.02 percent more than the same period of the previous year. In December, remittance flow increased to a record amount of $2.64 billion. Which is 32.52 percent more than the same month of the previous year. In July-December of the last fiscal year, remittances increased by 3 percent. In the same period of the current fiscal year, it increased by 27.5 percent.

According to government sources, remittance flow has increased due to various reasons after the political change. Among them, the price of the dollar has increased. A total of 5 percent incentive is being given against remittances, including 2.5 percent from the government sector and 2.5 percent from the banks’ own sources. Although the tendency to send remittances through hundi increased during the previous government, it has decreased after the change in the political landscape. The flow of remittances has increased mainly due to these reasons.

But after the fall of the Awami League government, communal tensions arose in different regions of the country within a few days. Various propaganda was being carried out at home and abroad centered on this. Worker dissatisfaction arose in various industries. This disrupted production activities. In addition, movements in the name of demands started in various sectors. Along with this, terrorist activities are being carried out separately. Funds are being provided from various sources to carry out these activities. One of which is a part of the remittances.

During the tenure of the ousted Awami League government, people in favor of the government smuggled money out of the country in various ways. A part of that money is under the control of the government’s policymakers. That money is now being sent to the country in the form of remittances.

The primary investigation of the relevant agencies has confirmed that these are being used to create instability in the country. Due to these reasons, a cycle of instability has been started in different regions of the country on various issues; the main purpose of which is to put pressure on the government.

Meanwhile, the report of the White Paper Committee on Economic Affairs states that 234 billion dollars have been laundered from the country during the Awami League government.

Investigations by various agencies have shown that excessive remittances have arrived in the bank accounts of some individuals in different regions of the country. These have been withdrawn in cash. The exact account of which is not available. The Central Bank considers the entire incident suspicious. Transactions in some such bank accounts have been temporarily suspended.

A significant portion of the remittances coming into the country come through hundis. Currently, there is a risk in transferring large amounts of money in hundis. That is why bank accounts are now being used even in suspicious transactions. Former Finance Minister of the previous government, AHM Mustafa Kamal, gave the example of his personal research and said that 42 percent of the total remittances coming into the country come in hundis.

Some time ago, a survey report by the International Labor Organization (ILO) said that at least 40 percent of the total remittance flow in the country comes in hundis. It is feared that a part of the remittances coming in hundis may also be used for terrorist activities. For this reason, various activities have been started to prevent hundis.

Sources say that the government started giving two percent cash incentives against remittances from July 1, 2019. Later, it was increased to two and a half percent. Which is still ongoing. As a result of giving incentives, the remittance flow through banking channels increased. At that time, many large funds were coming into the country in the form of remittances.

It was suspected that laundered money was also coming into the country. At that time, the government made a provision to submit the necessary documents to the foreign exchange houses to inform the source of remittances exceeding 5 lakh taka. This reduced the remittance flow again.

In May 2022, the central bank issued a circular withdrawing the provision to submit the source of income and necessary documents to inform the source of income and its support when sending remittances of any amount. As a result, the remittance flow temporarily increased again. But due to the impact of the global recession, remittances have decreased again. However, after the political change, remittances have been increasing since last August. A part of this is laundered money, which is being used for terrorist activities.

After receiving such information, a circular was issued by the central bank in light of a high-level decision of the government on January 19.

It said that expatriates from abroad should inform the source of income to the foreign exchange houses against any amount of remittance sent to the country and the exchange house will preserve it. If necessary, the concerned bank should be informed. That is, if suspicious transactions are identified against a customer’s remittance, the central bank can summon those documents. In addition, the central bank has asked to provide two more pieces of information.

These are, regardless of the currency in which the customer sends the remittance, the amount of the remittance sent in Bangladeshi currency must be mentioned in terms of the exchange rate of the currency with the taka, and the exchange rate of the taka with the relevant currency must also be mentioned. At the same time, to ensure the security of remittances sent by expatriates, the amount of security deposit has been increased with the relevant banks of foreign exchange houses.

Read the news, give your opinion.