The High Court has issued a status-quo on a notice of Bangladesh Bank halting the privilege of loan defaulters to secure further loans until Jun 24.
The HC bench of justices FRM Nazmul Ahasan and KM Kamrul Kader passed the order following a writ petition on Tuesday (May 21).
Lawyer Manzill Murshid moved the petition on behalf of the filed by Human Rights and Peace for Bangladesh.
The court also set Jun 24 for the next hearing, said Md Muniruzzaman, who stood in the court for the central bank.
On May 16, Bangladesh Bank, in line with the proposition rolled out by Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal in April, issued the official circular on the government’s new scheme for loan defaulters to pay off their debts.
Those who are unable to pay, but can give ‘adequate justification’ for their situation, will be allowed to pay off the loans with a 2 percent down payment on the loan amount and 9 percent interest over 10 years with a one-year grace period.
The circular specifically mentioned a number of privileged priority sectors including trading sectors like wheat, food items, edible oil and refinery, and ship breaking, and other sectors where a huge number of bank loans have remained unpaid for long, will be considered for the latest loan rescheduling policy.
Defaulted loans at specialised banks sanctioned for purposes other than agriculture will also be entitled to the facility, it added.
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