After Sheikh Hasina was ousted from power, the names of more than fifty institutions in the country, including universities built in the name of members of the Sheikh family, have been changed. The house at Dhanmondi 32, which was the memorial museum of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, has been demolished, calling it an icon of the fascist rule of the Awami League government. Numerous sculptures and murals of his have been demolished. Although Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s picture is still adorning all the country’s banknotes and commemorative coins.

In this regard, Bangladesh Bank spokesperson and executive director Arif Hossain Khan told Banik Barta, “The central bank currently has a huge amount of printed notes. Canceling these printed notes would waste a huge amount of money. We do not want to waste this. Therefore, the previously printed notes will be released in the market on the occasion of Eid-ul-Fitr.”

Regarding the new design of the currency, Arif Hossain Khan said, “The design of the new note has been finalized. Hopefully, the note will be released in the market by April-May. The old notes will be gradually withdrawn from the market.”

According to Bangladesh Bank data, as of last December, the central bank issued notes worth Tk 3,177.4 billion in the market. Of this, Tk 2,774.56 billion was outside the banking sector. The amount of cash in banks was only Tk 24,317 billion. Economists and experts have long been claiming that a large portion of the central bank issued notes have been converted into illegal money (undeclared or black money) and are trapped in the ‘chest’.

Bangladesh Bank and the government issue currency based on the needs of the country’s economy. The official currency in Bangladesh is 1, 2 and 5 taka notes and coins. The government has issued such currency worth 1,546 crore taka. However, due to the pressure of increasing inflation, the official currency has already lost its usefulness in the market. The notes issued by Bangladesh Bank and signed by the Governor are known as ‘bank notes’. Bangladesh Bank notes are paper currency of 10, 20, 50, 100, 500 and 1000 taka.

During Sheikh Hasina’s one and a half decade rule, she has replaced the portrait of her father Sheikh Mujibur Rahman on all the country’s coins. Currently, starting from the 1 taka coin in circulation, every coin and paper note in the market has Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s portrait. In addition to coins and notes, almost all the ‘commemorative coins’ issued by the central bank on various days also have Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s portrait. Currently, there are more than 15 gold and silver commemorative coins in circulation in the country.

According to the central bank, as of June 2024, there are 161 crore 74 lakh 13 thousand 990 notes of 10 taka, 96 crore 50 lakh 23 thousand 313 notes of 20 taka and 59 crore 78 lakh 98 thousand 75 notes of 50 taka in circulation. And there are 129 crore 38 lakh 81 thousand 965 and 33 crore 12 lakh 73 thousand 491 notes of 100 taka and 200 taka in circulation respectively. The largest number of notes in the market is 500 taka. There are 249 crore 68 lakh 84 thousand 734 notes of 500 taka, which are recognized as large notes. And 167 crore 46 lakh 42 thousand 990 notes of 1000 taka are in circulation. About 92 percent of the money issued by Bangladesh Bank is in 500 and 1000 taka notes.

A responsible official of the Currency Management Department of Bangladesh Bank told Banik Barta, “At the moment, we have about 20,000 crore taka of new notes. There is a decision to release these notes with the image of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in the market in phases. However, it will not be possible to remove the old notes from the market even after efforts over the next few years. Because most of the big notes are stuck in the homes of corrupt politicians, bureaucrats and oligarchs. For this, we may have to move towards drastic measures like demonetizing 500 and 1000 taka notes.”