Bangladeshi group ‘linked’ to terrorist group arrested

CHENNAI: A 30-year-old man allegedly belonging to the banned Bangladeshi group Ansar Al Islam was arrested by the Koyambedu police in West Bengal on Friday.

A Bengal STF official identified the accused as Anwar (30), who had been living in Chennai for at least two years and worked in restaurants on a casual basis. Sources said he was arrested at gunpoint from a construction site with the help of Chennai police.

Anwar hails from East Bardhaman district in West Bengal. The official said he also worked as a laborer in his village. He was accused of being involved in the radicalization of youth and certain incriminating materials were confiscated from him. He was arrested under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, produced before a local court and taken to West Bengal. This is the third recent arrest of suspected fundamentalists from Ansar Al Islam, also known as Shahadat. It is a banned terrorist organization in Bangladesh with alleged links to Al-Qaeda. A few days ago, an IT student from the same district as Anwar was arrested by the STF in Bengal. A few days ago, another person was arrested in Nabadwip, Nadia district.

The organisation came under scrutiny following the National Investigation Agency’s investigation into the 2014 Khagragarh blast in Bardhaman district.