The outlawed militant group in a letter to Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) President Mahbubey Alam issued the threat in continuation of its bomb attacks on and threats to judges of the lower courts and blow up government offices and NGOs.

Moulana Ali Azam, claiming himself the joint secretary of JMB, Dhaka, in the letter said the SCBA president cannot save the judges even by providing them with gunmen.

Police, meanwhile, recovered a container and a television remote control wrapped with a red tape and fitted to a circuit, batteries and wires, from beneath the table of the assistant headmistress of Khilgaon High School in the city yesterday.

An unknown woman wearing veils kept the bomb-like device in the room, a guardian said. Soon after the woman left the school, a bunch of handwritten letters were found saying a time bomb has been kept in the office of Assistant Headmistress Aloka Ghosh.

A small tin-pot, similar to one that holds explosives in a time bomb, was also set to the device. The container was, however, found filled with sand, police said.

THREAT TO HC JUDGES
The typewritten letter to the SCBA president bore the address of its sender as 19/3 Dhanmondi R/A, Dhaka, and said, "A promise that the judges/bribe-takers cannot be saved by providing gunmen" as the subject of the letter.

Opening the letter, which reached the SCBA office yesterday afternoon by registered mail, the SCBA president immediately sent a copy of it to the Ramna Police Station for taking necessary steps.

SCBA Secretary Enayetur Rahim yesterday told The Daily Star that he along with the SCBA president is now on a visit to Jhalakathi, Barisal and Bhola, the areas of recent bomb blasts and bomb threats. They will sit in a meeting after returning to the capital tomorrow, he said.

The letter read, "It is for your kind information that nobody other than the inexperienced, corrupt and BNP men can become a judge at present."

It also said those who did not have proper educational certificate but could bribe have been made judges on political consideration. "Do you think that they can be protected by providing gunmen?" the letter posed the question, also answering, "No".

Six SC judges and 75 percent HC judges take bribe, the letter claimed, adding that the assistant judges give 40 percent of their bribe-money to the judges of the judges' courts after appeals against their judgements are filed with these courts.

"The High Court and Supreme Court do not know what justice is. They just uphold the judgements of the lower courts. So, these judges do not have any right to live," the letter said.

BARISAL
The JMB yesterday in separate letters to Banaripara correspondent of the Daily Samakal Al Mamun Laskar, special correspondent of the local daily Ajker Barta Mizanul Islam and correspondent of Ajker Paribartan SM Mainul Islam Sabuj threatened with death.

Mainul told the BDNEWS that the handwritten letter, which mentioned the name of JMB at the bottom, threatened him to leave journalism or else he will have to die.

The journalists filed a general diary (GD) with the Banaripara PS in this connection.

Earlier, the JMB also threatened to blow up the Banaripara office of the Land Department.

COMILLA
Anonymous callers identifying themselves as JMB members have been threatening to blow up the office of the Bangladesh Academy for Rural Development (BARD) here for the last few days if the centre does not stop "anti-Islamic training", sources said.

Last Wednesday, the militants had sent a letter with a piece of shroud by post to BARD Assistant Director Abdul Mannan.

Security measures have been tightened at the BARD office and some important places in the town. The police searched the bags and identity cards of the BARD officers and employees at the entrance.

Earlier, the JMB had allegedly threatened to blow up Comilla Victoria Government College and Comilla Government College.

FAKE BOMB IN CITY SCHOOL
A guardian discovered the bunch of handwritten letters, lying in a corner of the guardians' waiting room at around 1:15pm, cautioning that a number of time bombs were planted at different places in the school, including the office of the assistant headmistress.

Soon the teachers rushed to the office of Aloka Ghosh and found the device under her table.

"If Islamic education as per the Qur'an and the Hadith is not introduced in the school within two days, the bombs would be detonated by remote control," read the notes sent by the Khilgaon unit of the banned Islamist outfit Harkatul Jihad.

Witnesses said the incident sent a wave of panic among the students, gurdians and teachers on the campus during the rush of two shifts of examinations.

The police conducted a hectic search but found nothing else.

Headmaster Jasimuddin Bhuiyan told newsmen that someone did it "to create panic".

The day shift examinations were held under tight security.

GAIBANDHA
Our Gaibandha correspondent reports: Gaibandha police yesterday attached movable properties of Matin Mehdi, second-in-command of Allahr Dal, a brigade of the banned JMB, from his Bridge Road residence in the town following a Jhenidah court order.

Mehdi, an accused in several cases of bomb blast and militant activities in Jhenidah, Comilla, Bogra, Sherpur and Pabna, has been absconding.

Recently Jhenidah police submitted a charge sheet against Babul Ansari, chief of Allahr Dal, and Matin Mehdi in connection with the August 17 bomb blasts.

RANGPUR
Our correspondent in Rangpur reports: Police have remained silent regarding the activities of Islamist militants in the district allegedly at the instruction of high-ups following the busting of the outfit's den at Noorpur, Rangpur.

Superintendent of Police Mahbub Mohshin refused to say anything but that he is unable to disclose any information about the recent operation at the Rangpur den for the sake of investigation.

Officer-in-Charge of the Kotwali thana Bazlur Rashid has been trusted with the investigation, he said.

Meanwhile, a reliable police source preferring anonymity said they had been warned by the high-ups not to disclose anything about the findings of the operation to the media.