Dhaka:  Twenty-six US congressmen have urged Bangladeshi Prime Minister Shaikh Hasina to amicably settle Nobel Laureate Professor Mohammad Younus' issue as the apex court on Tuesday adjourned the hearing on his appeal petition against his removal from the Grameen Bank for two weeks.

"We are troubled by the removal of Dr Mohammad Younus from his position at Grameen Bank," said the congressmen in a letter to the premier on March 11, which was made available to the media.

The group, led by Joseph Crowley and Gary Ackerman, said Bangladesh made important strides in economic growth by taking steps to address corruption, seeking greater cooperation with its neighbours, fighting poverty and improving the rule of law.

"Unfortunately, the situation with Dr Younus is beginning to overshadow these concrete gains and introduce uncertainty regarding one of Bangladesh's most visible and beloved institutions," the letter said.

Huge support

The Daily Star and several other mass circulation newspapers published the letter as Younus rallied huge support from the international community and civil society groups in the country behind him.

Meanwhile, the appellate division of the Supreme Court yesterday adjourned for two weeks the hearing on two appeals filed against the High Court judgement that upheld a Bangladesh Bank order removing Younus from the office of managing director of Grameen Bank.

Younus's chief counsel Kamal Hossain told the court that he was appointed Grameen Bank MD with the approval of Bangladesh Bank in 1990, while the central bank carried out an audit into the lending agency in 1998, but it did not raise any question about his appointment.

"[So] there was no need for further approval from Bangladesh Bank... If the government felt that it was not right for Younus to hold the office, it could have issued a proper notice to him," he said.

Younus filed the appeal petition as the High Court last week upheld a Bangladesh Bank order removing him from the pioneering micro-lending agency he had founded three decades ago, allegedly for holding the position of managing director without the central bank's approval.

Nine directors of Grameen Bank also filed an identical provisional leave-to-appeal petition seeking a stay on the High Court decision.

"Many of us have personally seen the effectiveness of Grameen programmes, and believe they and Dr Younus have done a great deal to improve lives by providing access to credit for those without collateral," read the congressmen's letter.

The congressmen said they had raised these concerns directly with the Bangladesh government over the past few months, "but the situation has not changed" as they urged Hasina to resolve the matter through a "mutual compromise" to ensure the independence of the microfinance institution. Younus was unceremoniously relieved of his duties last month via a letter sent by Bangladesh Bank to Grameen Bank. The High Court said he continued in his job with no legal basis — and he exceeded the retirement age of 60 as "an official" of the microcredit lending agency under the Grameen Bank regulation.

Home of microcredit

The 70-year-old Nobel Laureate's experiment in poor men's banking earned Bangladesh the reputation of being the home of microcredit.

Analysts earlier said Younus' troubles stem from 2007 when he announced the formation of a political party, which was not welcomed by Prime Minister Shaikh Hasina and her arch rival Zia. But Younus' removal came as he developed a growing dispute with the ruling Awami League in recent months after Norwegian TV aired a documentary alleging that he drew off nearly $100 million (Dh367.8 million) in aid for poor borrowers of Grameen Bank to Grameen Kalyan, a non-profit sister venture, violating agreements.

Despite the Norwegian government relieving him of the allegations, the government formed a five-member "review committee" to examine Grameen Bank transactions.