Man who posted image of ripped Singapore flag no longer with DBS
Disciplinary panel was called and employee counselled, says bank
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In a Facebook post, DBS said that Mr Avijit Das Patnaik was "no longer with the bank" as of Aug 24.
PHOTO: ST FILE
Ankita Varma
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A DBS employee who posted a picture on Facebook showing the Singapore flag being ripped apart to reveal India's flag underneath is no longer with the bank.
The image, which is believed to have first surfaced on Aug 14, one day ahead of India's Independence Day, was shared widely online after it was posted on the Singapore Indians and Expats page on Facebook by Singapore permanent resident Avijit Das Patnaik.
The page has more than 11,000 members.
DBS, in a Facebook post yesterday, said it strongly disapproved of Mr Patnaik's actions. Disclosing that he was counselled, the bank said he was given the benefit of due process.
"Since the incident, a disciplinary committee has been convened and as of 24 August, he is no longer with the bank," DBS said on Facebook.
The bank did not respond to queries on whether Mr Patnaik resigned or if he was dismissed. DBS also did not say what job Mr Patnaik had at the bank.
As of 9pm yesterday, DBS' post had 344 likes, 137 comments and 218 shares on Facebook, with the overall sentiment positive towards the bank's decision.
Ms May Tse, who was among those supporting the bank's move, said that she thought the picture was offensive, more so since it was posted just days after Singapore's National Day.
"Whether or not you designed the image is irrelevant. You should not be sharing something that so obviously defaces a national flag," the housewife said. "It is not surprising that so many Singaporeans were offended and given that DBS is a local bank, I support their decision to part ways with him.
Mr Patnaik, a permanent resident who has lived in Singapore for a decade, had told The Straits Times that he did not design the image. He also said that he had first seen it posted on various individual accounts on Facebook, Twitter and WhatsApp and that it was circulated widely.
Mr Patnaik is not the first foreigner to have found himself in hot water online after what has been perceived to be an offending post.
In a similar case in 2015, an assistant nurse from the Philippines, Ed Mundsel Bello Ello, was sacked by Tan Tock Seng Hospital after he made disparaging comments about Singaporeans through his Facebook page.
Not everyone, though, agreed with DBS' decision, with some like 24-year-old student Nurul Ismail describing it as too drastic.
"In cases where mistakes are made, we should have some leeway for people to show remorse and learn from their errors," she said.
"Singaporeans are becoming more vicious online and these witch hunts make us look very bad - especially when people go to the extent of threatening families or employers."
Former Nominated Member of Parliament Calvin Cheng yesterday said he did not approve of the type of "nationalism" and "national pride that stirs up online mobs to anger whenever they feel a foreigner has insulted Singapore or Singaporeans online".
"The people of a strong, secure country are confident enough to laugh off these slights, and not be baited into an angry frenzy. Come on Singapore. We are better than this," Mr Cheng said in a Facebook post.
