Journalists covering economic affairs staged a sit-in in front of Bangladesh Bank on Thursday to protest against the move. In view of the situation, the President and Secretary General of the Economic Reporters Forum (ERF) held a meeting with Bangladesh Bank Governor Abdur Rauf Talukdar, but no solution emerged from the meeting. The Governor said that top secret documents of Bangladesh Bank are coming out secretly through journalists and hence they should not be given free entry into the central bank building.
Bangladesh Bank's decision comes at a time when the banking sector is facing severe criticism over issues like mergers and defaulted loans. Are the Central Bank officials trying to hide their weakness and failure with this decision?
However, this is not the first case of Bangladesh Bank imposing restrictions on journalists. In 2016, Fazle Kabir was appointed as the governor after Atiur Rahman resigned in the wake of the reserve robbery. On the very first day, journalists were barred from going to the third floor of the Governor House. The order was later canceled after objections and protests from journalists.
