Investigation of the plane started, public relations officer Bosra was removed

Photo: Collected

News Desk: As part of an administrative reshuffle at Biman Bangladesh Airlines, General Manager (GM) and Public Relations Officer (PRO) Bosra Islam has been relieved of her responsibilities.

An office order regarding the matter was issued on Thursday (August 13). She has been attached to the office of the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (MD & CEO) as an Officer on Special Duty (OSD). In her place, GM Md. Mahiuddin of the Corporate Planning Department has been given additional responsibility as the Public Relations Officer.

The change was announced in an office order signed by Umme Kulsum, Manager of Biman Bangladesh Airlines’ Personnel Branch.

According to sources, Bosra Islam had been accused of negligence in providing information to the media on various matters concerning Biman. In particular, questions were raised about the role of the Public Relations Department in crisis-time information management following the recent incident in which a Biman flight became stranded in Rome, Italy, due to a technical problem. It was against this backdrop that the decision was made to remove her from the position.

On August 6, Biman Bangladesh Airlines flight BG-306 departed Toronto, Canada, for Dhaka with 259 passengers on board. After landing in Rome to refuel, a technical problem was detected in the aircraft. Despite nearly eight hours of attempts, the problem could not be repaired, and the flight was grounded. The passengers were kept inside the aircraft for a prolonged period before eventually being taken to the airport terminal. However, as passengers holding Bangladeshi passports were not permitted to enter Italy, most of them had to remain inside the airport. Alongside the suffering of the passengers, the incident drew widespread criticism of Biman Bangladesh Airlines’ crisis response and information management.

The incident involving the stranded flight in Rome received extensive attention on social media as well as in international media. It also raised questions about the service quality and image of Biman Bangladesh Airlines, the national flag carrier.

According to people familiar with the matter, there was a lack of coordination in providing information to the media and passengers during the incident. There were also allegations of inadequate information sharing, providing misleading information, and failure in crisis-time public relations management. The matter came to the attention of Biman’s senior authorities. Subsequently, as part of an administrative measure, Bosra Islam was removed from her responsibilities as Public Relations Officer.

Meanwhile, allegations have also been raised against Bosra Islam regarding several investigation-related matters at Biman, including accusations that she provided the media with inaccurate or misleading information. According to relevant sources, she allegedly attempted to divert the investigation into allegations of irregularities and human trafficking involving the much-discussed couple Shamima Parvin and Shahjahan. It has also been alleged that she has a close friendship with Shamima Parvin.

There are also allegations that Bosra Islam continued to exercise influence within Biman even after the political change on August 5 and remained in her position. According to those concerned, there was no significant decline in her influence and authority within the organization despite the changed political circumstances.

Several Biman officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Jugantor that Bosra Islam had used family connections to exert influence over Civil Aviation and Biman Bangladesh Airlines. They alleged that her brother-in-law, Air Vice Marshal Mahmud Hossain, who served as Chairman of the Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB), was used as a source of influence to provide various benefits to individuals associated with the Awami League at different times.

There are even allegations that she was involved in removing or making important documents belonging to various officials disappear, according to the officials concerned.

Sources further claimed that after obtaining a job at Biman through her family connections, Bosra strengthened her position within the organization by using her brother-in-law’s influence. Her younger sister, Najmun, also works at Biman and serves as an Assistant Manager in the Ground Services Department.

Questions have also been raised about the process through which Bosra obtained her job. According to sources, she initially failed to pass the recruitment examination for the position of Junior Traffic Assistant. She was later allegedly appointed to a Group-6 position at Biman through the influence of her brother-in-law. The sources claimed that she benefited from family influence at various stages, from recruitment to her subsequent career progression.

However, despite repeated attempts over the past three days to contact Bosra Islam by phone to obtain her comments on these allegations, she could not be reached. As a result, her statement regarding the allegations could not be obtained.