Nurjahan Group MD Ratan arrested over loan defaults
Confirming the matter, Kotwali police station Officer-in-Charge SM Obayedul Haque said the arrestee has been taken to Chattogram
Zahir Ahmed Ratan, managing director of the Chattogram-based Nurjahan Group, has been arrested in connection with defaulting on a loan of around Tk2,600 crore.
SM Obaidul Haque, officer-in-charge of Kotwali Police Station, said a police team from the station arrested Ratan at a house in Dhaka on Thursday morning.
"There are arrest warrants against him in several cases, and he is currently being transported from Dhaka to Chattogram," he told The Business Standard.
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Rezaul Karim, a bench assistant at the money loan court in the port city, told TBS that they have also learned about the arrest of the Nurjahan Group owner.
"There are at least 30 cases against him, and the charges include loan defaults. In at least 21 cases, he faces arrest warrants and a ban from leaving the country," he added.
Zahir Ahmed Ratan had been absconding since the issuance of an arrest warrant in a case in September last year.
Subsequently, he was ordered to submit his passport the same month, but he did not comply. The court passed the orders in a case filed by South East Bank in 2020 involving the default of a Tk268 crore loan.
Nurjahan Group was once a leading consumer goods trading entity in Chattogram. Substantial losses in the consumer goods business, land acquisitions through loans, and the lavish lifestyle of executives have resulted in the conglomerate accumulating significant debts from various banks.
As per the first information reports of the cases, the defaulted loans from various banks to the group amount to Tk2,600 crore.
Three firms within the conglomerate based in Chattogram owe Agrani Bank Tk936 crore, Rupali Bank Tk544 crore, National Bank Tk500 crore, Janata Bank Tk326 crore, and Sonali Bank Tk106 crore, among other banks.
According to sources, the group had at least 20 subsidiaries, including Marine Vegetable Oils, Nurjahan Super Oil, and Jasmir Vegetable Oil. However, over the last five to seven years, most of the entities have closed due to business losses and defaults to various banks.
In September 2022, the police arrested Tipu Sultan, a director of the group and Ratan's brother, from Gulshan in the capital. He is currently in Chattogram jail.
