Burdwan blast: NIA arrests 'jihadi motivator'

The NIA Friday arrested Zia-ul-Haque, a close aide of Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) commander Sajid, from West Bengal's Malda district in connection with the Oct 2 Burdwan blast.

A resident of Kaliachak in the district, Haque is said to be key 'jihadi motivator' who would motivate trainees in jihadi ideology, including those involved in the blast inside a house in Khagragarh in Burdwan district that killed two suspected JMB militants and injured another.

"Haque was a part of a jihadi training module where he was a key motivator and would motivate the trainees in jihadi ideology. He used to facilitate the training module by collecting jihadi videos related to the Gujarat riots, Assam riots, killing of Rohingiyas etc.," the National Investigation Agency said.

The NIA said the videos were also shown in madrassas, including the ones at Simulia and Mukhimnagar, where the accused involved in the Burdwan blast are believed to have been radicalised in jihadi ideology.

The agency claimed Haque was closely associated with top JMB commanders, including the absconding Sajid, who is said to be the "chief of the Burdwan module" and Sakib alias Suman.

"The NIA team also conducted a raid at his house in Malda and recovered a laptop. This laptop was reportedly handed over to Haque by Rizaul Karim after the Burdwan blast," the agency said.

Karim is one of the absconders involved in the blast. An NIA team had unearthed a huge cache of IEDs from Karim's house shortly after taking over the probe.

Many people, including two women, have been arrested in connection with the blast.

The NIA Wednesday secured the custody of Abdul Hakim, a key accused who was injured in the blast, and announced cash awards for information helping in the arrest of the absconding accused including Sajid.