The NIA today arrested four people who were suspected to be hardcore members of banned Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) terror outfit and who were also alleged recruiters taking to 16 the number of people it has nabbed in its probe in the Burdwan blast case.
The four -- Dalim Sheikh alias Faijul Hoque Sheik, Motiur Rehman alias Noor Alam, Habibur Rehman and Ghiyasuddin Munshi -- were arrested from different parts of the West Bengal.
The National Investigation Agency(NIA) took over the case from West Bengal police few days after the explosion after international links started surfacing. The blast in Burdwan took place inside a house on October two last leaving one person dead and another seriously injured.
Investigations have found that Improvised Explosive Devices(IED) were being fabricated in the house and later smuggled to neighbouring Bangladesh.
Giving details about today's arrest, NIA claimed in a statement that Dalim Sheikh was "full time member" of JMB and was involved in setting up bases and hideouts, raising and collecting funds, radicalising youths and providing tactical and material support to their senior Bangladeshi members of JMB in expanding their network to India.
Motiur Rehman was a close associate of Shakil Gazi, who was killed in the blast. He was believed to be the main person who used to maintain the hideouts and training centres and bomb making centres at Beldanga in Murshidabad.
Habibur Rehman was a very close associate of Sajid, a senior Bangladeshi JMB member who was arrested earlier by NIA. He used to allegedly maintain and run the terrorist training camp being run from Mukimnagar Madarsa in Murshidabad district.
The fourth accused, Ghiyasuddin Munshi, joined JMB with his wife and had undergone training with the terror group, the NIA said. He was engaged in providing safe shelter and hiding places and facilities to senior Bangladeshi members of JMB so that they can sustain their terrorist activities, it claimed.
The NIA has so far found that members of JMB terror group had established their network in different places like Murshidabad, Nadia, Malda, Birbhum, Burdwan in West Bengal and Barpetta in Assam, Sahibganj and Pakur in Jharkhand.
The NIA also claimed that senior members of JMB had established terrorist training centres and bomb making units in Beldanga and Mukim Nagar of Murshidabad, Nanur of Birbhum and Khagraghar and Simulia of Bhurdman District.
