Shipbreakers Association Hostage!

The Bangladesh Shipbreakers and Recyclers Association (BSBRA), an organization of shipbreaking workers, is being held hostage by a group. The organization’s elections were not held on the scheduled date. The election board resigned after failing to fulfill its duties. Then, Amjad Chowdhury was made the acting president in violation of the rules. Finally, the Ministry of Commerce brought the issue of irregularities in the organization to the fore. The Ministry of Commerce has dissolved the Board of Directors of the Shipbreakers Association and appointed an administrator.
On February 5, an office order signed by Muhammad Rehan Uddin, Director General (DTO) of the Commerce Department of the Ministry of Commerce, appointed Abu Safayat Muhammad Shahe Dul Islam, Secretary of the Bangladesh Shipping Corporation, as the administrator of the Shipbreakers Association.
The office order stated that the Shipbreakers Association is not being run in accordance with the Trade Organization Act. The appointment of Amjad Hossain Chowdhury as the acting president of the organization is against the articles of association.
The Ship Breakers Association elections were scheduled to be held on October 25 last year. But about a month and a half before the elections, the election board resigned on September 15, citing ‘inability to discharge their duties independently’. As a result, no elections were held.
When asked about the reason for the resignation, Election Board Chairman Kazi Mahmud Imam Bilu told us, ‘Everything was not going according to the right rules there. We could not work independently. The candidates did not cooperate with us. So I left with my honor.’
In response to a question, he said, ‘Many candidates were defaulters. Some of them had rescheduled their loans. But Amjad Chowdhury could not reschedule his loans. He claimed that he had rescheduled his loans. When a controversy arose over this, I resigned and left.’
It has been alleged that after the elections were cancelled, the executive committee of the Ship Breakers Association became hostage in the hands of a clique. The term of the current executive committee was until November 9. On August 5, 2024, after the fall of the Awami League government, the organization’s president Abu Taher resigned from the leadership. He is the father of Didarul Alam Didar, a former Awami League MP from Chittagong-4 (Sitakunda) constituency, and the brother of former city mayor Manjur Alam. When Abu Taher resigned, senior vice president Liaquat Ali Chowdhury became the acting president. He is the younger brother of Chattogram industrialist Shawkat Ali Chowdhury (Disco Shawkat).
After losing the election, Liaquat Ali Chowdhury expressed his inability to perform the duties of the acting president. Then, on November 3, a meeting was held to make Amjad Hossain Chowdhury the acting president of the organization. He is the younger brother of BNP candidate for Sitakunda constituency Aslam Chowdhury. Amjad Chowdhury is a member of the organization’s executive committee. He was appointed instead of SM Al Mamun, a former Awami League MP from Chittagong-4 (Sitakunda) constituency.
It has been alleged that Amjad Chowdhury has been made the acting president in violation of the organization’s articles, excluding the senior vice-president and two vice-presidents. The two vice-presidents are PHP director Zahirul Islam Rinku and KSRM DMD Karim Uddin. When asked about this, Amjad Hossain Chowdhury asked the news agency, “Where does it say in the articles of the association that an executive member cannot be the acting president?”
Asked why the Commerce Ministry’s office order had mentioned making him the acting president as ‘contrary to the articles of the association’, he said, “I will seek an explanation from the Commerce Ministry. Not only that, I have filed an application in the High Court to quash the Commerce Ministry’s order appointing the administrator.”
A former executive member of the Ship Breakers Association told us on condition of anonymity that a clique is holding the Ship Breakers Association hostage. Although Amjad Chowdhury was made the acting president in violation of the articles of association, no one could say a word in the meeting. Everyone sat with their heads bowed.

Amjad Chowdhury took over as the acting president on November 3 and the term of the committee ended on November 9. Why did he take over as the acting president for only 6 days? A former executive member of the Ship Breakers Association told us on condition of anonymity that he (Amjad Chowdhury) wanted to form a new election board within 5 days and organize the election. But he could not do so for various reasons.
It is learned that the newly appointed administrator will announce a new schedule within 90 days and organize the election. In the elections of the Ship Breakers Association, a president, senior vice-president, two vice-presidents and seven executive members were elected for two years. The number of voters of the organization is 46.
It is worth noting that there was no voting in the elections of the Ship Breakers Association for four terms in the last 8 years. The leadership of the association was elected without voting. The organization’s former president, Abu Taher, held the position of president without a vote for nine consecutive years.