Morshed Alam
Morshed Alam | |
|---|---|
মোরশেদ আলম | |
| Member of Parliament | |
| In office 29 January 2014 – 6 August 2024 | |
| Preceded by | Zainul Abdin Farroque |
| Constituency | Noakhali-2 |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 29 March 1950 Noakhali, East Bengal, Dominion of Pakistan |
| Nationality | Bangladeshi |
| Political party | Bangladesh Awami League |
Morshed Alam (born 29 March 1950) is a Bangladeshi business magnate, politician and a former Jatiya Sangsad member representing the Noakhali-2 constituency.[1] Alam is the chairperson of the Bengal Group.[2] Alam was the chairman of Mercantile Bank Limited.[3] He is the chairperson of RTV and vice chairman of Desh General Insurance Company Limited.[4] He is a director of United Hospital Limited and the National Life Insurance Company Limited.[5] He is a trustee board member of Peoples University of Bangladesh.[6]
Early life
[edit]Alam was born on 29 March 1950.[7] He studied up to a Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC).[8]
Career
[edit]In 1969, Alam founded Bengal Group, one of Bangladesh's largest plastic and manufacturing groups today.[9] He started with a single injection molding machine.[10] In 1992, he received the contract to supply plastic crates for both Pepsi and Coca-Cola.[10]
Alam's company, Bengal Plastic Industries Limited, was awarded Enterprise of the Year in 2007.[2] Its turnover that year was 35$ million.[2] In April 2010, he was elected chairman of Mercantile Bank Limited.[4] He was elected vice-chairman of the bank the following year.[5]
Alam was elected a member of parliament from Noakhali-2 in 2014 as a candidate of the Awami League unopposed in an election boycotted by all major political parties.[11][8] He received a 36$ million investment from FMO (Netherlands) and the International Finance Corporation in the Bengal Group.[12]
He was reelected to parliament in 2018 from Noakhali-2 as a candidate of the Awami League.[13] He received 177,391 votes, while his nearest rival, Jainul Abedin Faruk of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, received 26,169 votes.[13] He was elected chairman of Mercantile Bank in 2019.[6] He was one of the defendants in a lawsuit over the drama Indemnity, which allegedly portrayed Ziaur Rahman, former President of Bangladesh and founder of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, negatively.[14] The drama focused on the controversial Indemnity Act and aired on various platforms, sparking protests from Bangladesh Nationalist Party supporters.[14] However, a Dhaka court dismissed the case against Morshed Alam and others, including Tarana Halim, President of Bangabandhu Sangskritik Jote and former minister, and actor Shaju Khadem.[14] He made a donation to the Prime Minister's Relief Fund in 2020 along with chairmen of other commerical banks.[15]
In 2021, Alam founded Bengal Commercial Bank led by his younger brother Jashim Uddin.[16] He was re-elected to Parliament in the 2024 general elections as a candidate of the Awami League.[17] He received 56,186 votes while his nearest rival, Ataur Rahman Bhuya Kanchi, received 52,863 votes.[17][18]
After the fall of the Sheikh Hasina led Awami League government, Alam's factory, Bengal Plastic at Zirani, was burned down along with several businesses owned by Awami League supporters.[19] He was detained by the Detective Branch led by Rezaul Karim Mallick in April 2025.[20] He was sent to jail in a case over the death of Shamim, a school student, in protests against Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in July 2024.[21]
References
[edit]- ^ "Final Election Result from EC". Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha. Archived from the original on 2 February 2017. Retrieved 19 January 2017.
- ^ a b c "Winners of Bangladesh Business Awards '07". The Daily Star. Retrieved 9 April 2025.
- ^ "Mercantile Bank wins South Asian Business Excellence Award". The Daily Star. Retrieved 9 April 2025.
- ^ a b "New committee chiefs for Mercantile Bank". The Daily Star. Retrieved 9 April 2025.
- ^ a b "New vice chairmen for Mercantile Bank". The Daily Star. Retrieved 9 April 2025.
- ^ a b "Mercantile Bank gets new chairman". The Daily Star. 5 July 2019. Archived from the original on 23 February 2024. Retrieved 9 April 2025.
- ^ "Constituency 269_10th_En". Bangladesh Parliament (in Bengali). Archived from the original on 6 July 2018. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
- ^ a b Ahmed, Taib (15 December 2013). "AL closer to majority before voting". New Age. Archived from the original on 30 June 2022. Retrieved 9 April 2025.
- ^ "Mercantile Bank Ltd. » Management". www.mblbd.com. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
- ^ a b "Bangladesh Business Awards 2007". archive.thedailystar.net. Retrieved 9 April 2025.
- ^ "Bangladesh Election Result 2014 by Dhaka Tribune". election.dhakatribune.com. Archived from the original on 6 July 2018. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
- ^ "Bengal Group gets $36m from IFC, Dutch govt for luxury hotel". The Daily Star. 29 September 2017. Archived from the original on 19 December 2024. Retrieved 9 April 2025.
- ^ a b "Noakhali-2 - Constituency detail of Bangladesh General Election 2018". The Daily Star. 25 November 2018. Archived from the original on 13 April 2019. Retrieved 9 April 2025.
- ^ a b c "'Negative portrayal of Zia': Lawsuit against Tarana Halim dismissed". The Daily Star. 29 September 2020. Archived from the original on 20 October 2020. Retrieved 9 April 2025.
- ^ "Banks donate blankets to PM's relief fund". The Daily Star. 30 October 2020. Archived from the original on 15 April 2024. Retrieved 9 April 2025.
- ^ "Another new bank opens for business". The Daily Star. 11 March 2021. Archived from the original on 11 May 2024. Retrieved 9 April 2025.
- ^ a b "AL wins all 6 seats in Noakhali". dailycountrytodaybd.com. Retrieved 9 April 2025.
- ^ "Open Graph: Take Control of Your Snippets on Facebook". election.dhakatribune.com. Retrieved 9 April 2025.
- ^ "Houses of 2 ministers, 9 MPs come under attack". The Daily Star. Retrieved 9 April 2025.
- ^ "Bengal Group Chairman Morshed Alam arrested". The Daily Star. Retrieved 9 April 2025.
- ^ "Ex-lawmaker Morshed Alam sent to jail in Shamim killing case | Others". BSS. Retrieved 9 April 2025.