DHAKA: The Executive Director (ED) of Bangladesh Bank (BB) M Mahfuzur Rahman is holding his office with fake academic certificate which he utilized to reduce his age.

According to the original certificate, he was supposed to retire on December 31 0f 2014.

The central bank sources said Mahfuzur Rahman joined the service on June 15, 1981 as an Assistant Director. Accordingly, he got promotions as Deputy Director, Joint Director and Deputy General Manager. At present, he is holding the post of Executive Director.

According to government rules, Mahfuzur Rahman was to retire at the age of 60. After seventeen years of his service to get facilities of doing extra service he submitted a fake academic certificate where his age was mentioned eleven months less than his original certificate. And as per that fake certificate he is still in service.

The central bank in 2001 rejected that fake certificate to avoid legal complications. Later, he submitted prayers for two times. Similarly, those prayers were also rejected.

The issue was reached to the finance minister in the form of complain on last November 12 of 2012.

The bank and financial institutions division of the ministry gave directives to the central bank to take necessary actions.

A three member committee with deputy governor Abu Hena Mohammad Razi Hassan as chairman was formed by the BB governor to investigate and report to the authority.

In the enquiry report, it was told that at the time of entering service Mahfuzur Rahman’s date of birth was recorded as January 1, 1956 in the secondary school certificate.

After 17 years, the new corrected certificate issued in 1999 mentioned his date of birth as 1/11/1956 which Mahfuz submitted to the central bank.

On September 4 of 2001, Mahfuz applied to the authorities concerned to accept the revised certificate. After a long gap, the bank authority on April 6, 2003 rejected the prayer. On October 21 of the same year when Mahfuz again submitted another prayer for consideration it was also rejected on December 10.

In the enquiry report, it was told that the corrected fake certificate had no similarity with other certificate’s format. For example, the certificates issued in 1972 used to write the spelling as ‘Dacca’ not ‘Dhaka’. However, the newly issued certificate showed the spelling as ‘Dhaka’.

The committee found many other anomalies in the two certificates- one submitted at the time of entering the job and the other submitted after 21 years. The two had no similarity.

The enquiry committee sent a letter to the controller of examinations of Dhaka board on November 30, 2013 to verify the certificate. No reply came from the board authority. Next, the committee contacted the chairman of the board directly but he did not give any satisfactory reply.

According to the records of KB High School of Bhairob under Kishorganj district where Mahfuzur Rahman got admitted in class IX, he mentioned his date of birth as 1/11/1956.

However, the Head Master said that no recommendation was done by the school to revise the date of birth of Mahfuzur Rahman.

To know about the matter when contacted with Mahfuzur Rahman over cell phone he did not agree to talk.

BDST: 0915 HRS, JAN 12, 2015