2 suspected militants held in Rajshahi
Rajshahi police claimed to have arrested two youths who they said were from a new militant group named Ansar Rajshahi.
The arrestees are Aminul Islam Rumi, 23, and Enamul Haque Sabuj, 22, of Sripur Khamarpara village in Bagmara upazila, Moazzem Hossain Bhuiyan, superintendent of police in the district, said at a press briefing at his office last evening.
The group is based in Rajshahi and was planning to kill a local Hindu homeopath, he said.
Acting on a tip-off, a team from the Detective Branch of police in Rajshahi and Bagmara police jointly arrested Rumi, a student of Bagmara College, from his home around 2:30am yesterday.
Based on information gleaned from him, the team arrested Sabuj, a student at Rajshahi Government College, from Hatibandha Ramguia village in the upazila around an hour later.
The arrestees were “active” members of Ansar Rajshahi, claimed the SP.
The group, which aimed at establishing a new governing system based on the Shariah law, has just six members, he said.
The group is headed by one Abu Ibrahim alias Ripon of Boalia area in Rajshahi city, said police, adding that they were trying to arrest its other members.
SP Moazzem said Sabuj had lately been making preparations to visit Saudi Arabia. He had also applied for police clearance for his passport.
Police also claimed to have seized the passports and mobile phones of the arrestees.
A case was filed under the anti-terrorism act with Bagmara Police Station, accusing the six members of the group.
One of the other accused in the case is Shariful Islam, a 3rd-year student at the English department of Rajshahi University. He is also the prime suspect in the murder case of RU teacher AFM Rezaul Karim Siddique.
According to text messages exchanged between the two arrestees, the group was planning to murder homeopath Nirendronath Sarker.
During their primary interrogation, the arrestees confessed their involvement in the group, claimed police.
Nirendronath has been provided with police protection, added the SP.