Assam, Tripura police joint efforts to crack against Jihadi group

Guwahati/Agartala, April 19 (IANS): The Assam and Tripura police in one-an-a-half month have separately arrested 14 suspected cadres of Bangladesh based Al-Qaeda in Indian Sub-continent (AQIS), including a Bangladeshi national and the police and intelligence officials of the two states are sharing info to deal with the Jihadi group.

Officials of Assam and Tripura police separately said on Tuesday that they are on high alert against the ‘AQIS cadres’ activities in the northeastern states specially in Assam and Tripura.

The three persons, who were arrested in Tripura on April 3 for their links with the banned Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), have taken to Assam on Monday as part of the investigation against the Jihadi group. Intelligence officials found links between these three persons with the four arrested in Bhopal recently for their affiliation to the JMB.

Top central and Tripura intelligence officials interrogated Imran Hussain, 25, an Imam, Abul Kashem 32, a teacher, and Hamid Ali, a farmer, who were arrested from Jatrapur, a village in Sepahijala district of Tripura along India-Bangladesh border.

The trios were booked under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA).

“The trio during interrogations had confessed that they are in alliance with the people arrested in Bhopal,” a top police officer, who is a part of the investigating team, told IANS.

The police officer, however, declined to share more information, saying an investigation is underway. The Anti-Terrorist Squad of Madhya Pradesh has arrested the four persons affiliated to the outlawed JMB from different areas of Bhopal earlier this month.

On April 15 and March 4, eleven AQIS cadres were separately arrested from Barpeta district of western Assam.

During a preliminary inquiry after the March 4 arrest, it has been found that Saiful Islam a.k.a. Harun Rashid a.k.a. Mohammad Suman, who is a Bangladesh citizen, illegally entered India and was working as a teacher in Dhakaliapara Masjid in Barpeta district.

One of the 11 detainees is a member of the Popular Front of India (PFI).Police have recovered a large number of mobile phones, many SIM cards and other objects from them.