Are business syndicators working on another 1/11 gambit?

 
The ease of doing business has hit hurdles enormously since 5 August 2024 as a result of the political instability and collapse in law and order situation all over Bangladesh. Investments, commercial activities, foreign trade and transactions in banks have become highly precarious and unpredictable for last around four months. Under these circumstances, speculations have emerged from well-informed platforms that business leaders are reportedly working out plans to imperil the interim government following the gambit traders had applied to endanger the caretaker government which came to power with army backing on 11 January 2007, popularly known as 1/11.

Severe escalation of prices of daily essential commodities has shot through the roof. Banks are not being able to disburse cash on a desirable scale. As a result a remarkable magnitude of dissatisfaction is going on among the country's ordinary masses. Business enterprises are facing acute doldrums since common people are facing intensified monetary crisis and getting trodden under the merciless jackboot of price hikes and vicious market syndicates.

It may be recalled that importers stopped opening letters of credit or LCs during the closing months of 2008 which led to a dire shortage of daily necessary goods. For this reason supply chain was seriously disrupted at that time. Prices of different products rose immensely within a very short time. In particular the price of rice broke through all barriers and leaped far beyond low-income people's purchasing capability. It was an act of non-cooperation from leading business enterprises to put the then caretaker government in trouble. The tricks the businessmen played in 2008 succeeded to compel the caretaker government to call for elections rapidly. As a result of which general elections took place all over Bangladesh on 28 December 2008 in which Awami League won massively.

Reliable sources have informed that influential business monopolists are working stealthily but vehemently to create an extremely inconvenient situation in Bangladesh which is most likely to jeopardize the interim government that took oath on 8 August 2024 with Professor Dr. Muhammad Yunus in the post of Chief Adviser.

A few economists have told The Asian Age on condition of anonymity that the interim government must execute strong measures without compromise to dismantle syndicators and to take immediate and effective steps to pull down inflation and mounting prices. Otherwise things will fall apart in an insurmountable way, the above economists voiced worries.