Intelligence agencies of Bangladesh and India suspect that the JMB operatives who snatched convicted militants from Mymensingh’s Trishal are behind the October 2 Burdwan blast.
The visiting officials of the Indian National Investigation Agency (NIA) and Detective Branch (DB) of police yesterday came up with the views at a meeting at Police Headquarters in the city.
The NIA officials sought Bangladesh’s help in arresting JMB leaders Faruque alias Jamai Faruque alias Shawkat who snatched convicted Bomaru Mizan and Salehin from the police van on February 23 from Trishal.
“They [NIA team] requested us to help arrest the trio and interrogate them over the Burdwan blast as they have preliminary information that the trio might be involved,” Joint Commissioner Monirul Islam of Dhaka Metropolitan Police said after emerging from the meeting.
“We informed NIA officials that the three JMB men had fled Bangladesh following the Trishal incident. And we also sought their help to nab the trio,” said Monirul.
Bangladesh also handed over to the NIA team a list of JMB operatives believed to be hiding in India.
“We exchanged some information regarding JMB network and its operatives and also handed over a list of some JMB operatives who are hiding there [India] to evade arrest,” Monirul said adding, “Both sides have agreed to work in a coordinated manner to apprehend the operatives hiding in both the countries.”
When the news that some Bangladeshis were involved in the Burdwan blast surfaced in the media, we conducted drives and arrested several operatives of the JMB, Monirul said adding, “We have got some information regarding the blast [Burdwan] which we exchanged with the NIA team.”
An intelligence team from Bangladesh will soon visit India to expedite the process of identifying and arresting the absconding militants, he said.
Asked when the visit will take place, he said certain procedures need to be completed first before the visit takes place.
On the issue of a plot to kill Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and BNP chief Begum Khaleda Zia by militants, Monirul said such news surfaced in Indian media but the NIA was yet to ascertain the matter.
Regarding the nationality of Rezaul Karim Sajid, an alleged Bangladeshi national who masterminded the Burdwan blast and was arrested in India, Monirul said Saijd might be the pseudonym of JMB operative Masum of Narayanganj.
He added that Sajid alias Masum was arrested twice — first in 2005 for robbery at a BRAC Bank in Gopalganj and then in 2012 from the capital.
He however said, “Nationality of Sajid is yet to be ascertained.”
The NIA team on Tuesday handed over a list of 25 to 30 names of suspected militants who believed to behind the Burdwan blast.
Headed by Director General Sharad Kumar, the four-member NIA team is now in Dhaka to share information with Bangladeshi intelligence agencies of the Burdwan blast and activities of the JMB.
Source: The Daily Star
