‘JMB leader’ held in India

India's anti-terror agency National Investigation Agency (NIA) today arrested Noor-ul-Haque, alleged to be a financial brain behind banned Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) outfit, for his role in the larger conspiracy behind Burdwan blasts in West Bengal last year.

Haque, who was figured as Naeem during the investigation into the case, was apprehended outside Howrah Railway Station in West Bengal this morning by NIA sleuths and whisked away for interrogation, NIA officials said.

Haque, who carried a cash reward of Rs 1 lakh on his head and is considered to be a close aide of prime accused in the case arrested JMB chief Sajjid, is alleged to have been collecting cash for running the terror outfit, the officials said.

Haque is a resident of Bakshipur of Murshidabad district.

A senior NIA official said those arrested by the agency earlier had often referred his name as Naeem and, therefore, the NIA was not able to make any headway on this account.

After sustained questioning of some of the accused and clues gathered during the probe, it was found that Naeem was the assumed name of Haque, they said.

With the arrest of Haque, the number of people nabbed in the case has gone to 21.

On October 2 last year, a blast took place inside a house at Khagragarh killing one Shakil Gazi on the spot, while another Shovan Mandal succumbed in hospital. Both of them were suspected to have terror links.

NIA later found out that the actual identity of Mandal was Karim Sheikh and he had misled West Bengal police about his identity.

NIA has filed a charge sheet against 21 people in Burdwan blast case in March this year, claiming that JMB wanted to establish Sharia rule in Bangladesh by overthrowing the democratically-elected government of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.