The Jatiya Yuva Shakti, the youth wing of the regional Assam Jatiya Parishad (AJP), on Monday protested alleged financial irregularities in the Assam Cooperative Apex Bank Ltd here, seeking a high-level inquiry and strict action against those responsible for the alleged mismanagement.

In a development, a journalist from news portal The Cross Current, Dilwar Hussain Majumder, was detained by the police when he reached the bank headquarters to cover the news. He had not been released till the time of filing this report, resulting in condemnation from the AJP and other journalists.

The protest comes a day after Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma asserted in the Assembly that his government was bringing in more transparency to check corruption and improve governance. He had cited a rise in arrests of people in poaching cases, betel nut and drug trafficking, besides the arrest of 450 government employees, including officers, in corruption cases during his tenure as chief minister since 2021.

The Yuva Shakti protest was held in front of the bank’s headquarters at Panbazar here, led by the Yuva Shakti’s general secretary Chandrapal Baruah, with the protestors accusing the state government of “turning a blind eye to the corruption within the bank, despite substantial evidence of financial misconduct”.

Slogans were raised against the bank’s management, including its chairman, Biswajit Phukan (MLA), and managing director, Dombaru Saikia.

Established in 1948, The Assam Co-operative Apex Bank Ltd. (ACAB) has a wide network of 67 branches and 6 zonal offices, spread across the state, providing effective banking products and other related services to the general public. The ACAB has mobilised deposit resources of ₹3,474 crore and has made advances of over ₹1,436 crore (approximately) for various development activities in the state, according to its official website.

The protests have been based on a letter written by an account holder to the central vigilance commission flagging financial irregularities on January 30 this year, and then again a letter by a deputy secretary of the state cooperation department to the registrar of cooperative societies on March 3 this year to examine the irregularities and submit a report within 15 days.

This move, however, has “failed to pacify the protestors”, who argued that the government’s inaction so far suggests an attempt to shield those responsible, a statement released by the AJP said.

It is not known what action has been taken by the government in this case. A reaction from the bank is awaited.

According to a copy of a complaint dated January 30, 2025, and circulated during the protest by the youth organisation, the bank has been functioning without a formal contract with any IT vendor since June 2024, despite the expiry of previous agreements.

“This has led to concerns over operational stability and security risks for account holders. Allegations also include a drastic and unjustified cost escalation of banking infrastructure contracts from ₹28 crore in 2018 to nearly ₹50 crore in 2025...,” a statement released by the AJP said.

AJP youth leaders warned of bigger agitations if immediate steps were not taken to arrest the accountable.

“The financial future of countless account holders is at stake, yet the government remains silent. We demand an impartial probe and strict punishment for those who have betrayed public trust,” said Baruah.