Burdwan blast case: Key JMB man held in Jharkhand

The newly-formed Anti-Terrorist Squad of the Jharkhand police made its first arrest on Tuesday when - working alongside the NIA - it picked up an accused in the Burdwan blast case.

The NIA on Tuesday arrested a senior Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) member, who was instrumental in establishing the module that carried out the 2014 Burdwan blasts. Raihan Shaikh alias Sadik alias Sumon, who hails from Chapai Nababganj district of Bangladesh, was arrested by a joint team of NIA and the newly formed Jharkhand ATS from Ramgarh district, along its border with Ranchi.

Jharkhand police spokesperson S N Pradhan said the NIA passed on the information about Shaikh to the ATS. A team from the NIA then joined the ATS in making the arrest.

NIA sources said Shaikh, who has already been chargesheeted by the NIA for conspiracy in the Burdwan case, is ranked second in the outfit’s India chapter and is on the six-member Shura — the top decision-making body — of the JMB. He was absconding since the blasts and NIA had declared a reward of Rs 5 lakh for information leading to his arrest.

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“He is one of the top leaders of JMB and along with Sajid (arrested key accused in the blast) was entrusted with the task of setting up a JMB module in West Bengal. He is proficient in Arabic, Urdu and Bengali and used his skills to indoctrinate youth. He has been frequenting India since 2006-07 but began work on the module in 2011,” an NIA officer said.

Sources said based on his initial interrogation, the agency is conducting raids at various places in Jharkhand.

A blast in a house in Khagragarh area of Burdwan in West Bengal on October 2 last year had blown the lid of a JMB plan to manufacture bombs and transport them to Bangladesh to carry out terror attacks. While two JMB members died in the blast, several were arrested subsequently. — With ENS, Ranchi

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