A 22-year-old man was arrested Saturday for alleged links to the terror outfit Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), which was involved in the Bodh Gaya blast last year, police said.
The Special Task Force of Kolkata Police arrested Ariful Islam alias Arif, a resident of Barpeta of Assam, from Babughat at around 5.30 am, they said.
On January 19 last year, a low-intensity bomb had exploded hours after Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama had finished a sermon at the Mahabodhi temple in Bodh Gaya in Bihar.
"Arif studied at Howly in Assam and worked as a helper with truck drivers. He came in touch with Jahidul Islam alias Kauser and Abdul Majid and was invited by them to join JMB," a Kolkata Police officer said.
The officer said that Arif was in contact with other JMB operatives.
"In January 2018, Arif along with Adil, Hassan, Chota Kareem and Kausar went to Bodh Gaya, conducted recce and planted explosives. He was directly involved in the Bodh Gaya blast," the police officer said.
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He added that after the blast, Arif absconded to Bangalore and was involved in dacoities with other associates.
"He came to Kolkata for some work regarding recce and preparations for a plot to secure the escape of Kauser from custody on the way to court from jail," he said.
Some documents and papers have also been seized from him, he added.
The National Investigative Agency (NIA) had last year arrested five people in connection with the case.
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