Assured Terror Hub in West Bengal

1.

...................................................................................................................

HuJI militant held in Baguiati, Kolkata.

Statesman News Service The Telegraph, Calcutta

( updated as on 13th April,2009)

KOLKATA, April 12: A suspected Bangladesh-based Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami (HuJI) activist aged 35-years and a Bangladeshi man, believed to be a key operative of conspiracy to assassinate Sheikh Hassina, was arrested in Baguiati early on Sunday.

Mufti Ibrahim ~ who had allegedly planned to carry out an explosion to kill Bangladesh Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina back in 1999 ~ was detained by Criminal Investigation Department (CID) today. An officer of CID’s Special Operation Group (SOG) said the suspected Huji militant, Mufti Ibrahim had been staying at a rented house in Baguiati since 2000 posing as an umbrella trader. In late 1999, Ibrahim had planted a container with RDX in it, at a place at Gopalgunj in Bangladesh where Sheikh Hasina was holding a rally. She had a narrow escape after a local tea stall owner spotted the wire attached to the container and informed police, who deactivated the explosive shortly before the arrival of Sheikh Hasina.

Ibrahim, nephew of HuJI founder Mufti Hannan, fled from his home country in 2000 after his involvement in the case was out in the open.
“Ibrahim was arrested in connection with the plot to assasinate Sheikh Hasina and convicted,” said the official. “He fled Bangladesh in early 2000 and sneaked into West Bengal. We have information that he had travelled to Bangladesh on fake passports four times since.”

Infiltrating into India through a porous border, Ibrahim started staying in Nadia initially. Later, he came to Baguiati where he had set up a shop. He had been staying in a rented house in Baguiati posing himself as Manik Mondal, an umbrella trader from Nadia, a CID officer said adding that they had received a tip off about Ibrahim's hideout.

A raid was conducted this morning, following which Ibrahim was detained. He was brought to CID's headquarter at Bhawani Bhawan for interrogation. “We will seek help from the Bangladeshi High Commission in Kolkata who will apprise about Ibrahim's criminal record. Ibhrahim told us that he was desperately trying to get a ration card and an Indian passport,” a CID officer said. Sleuths suspect that Ibrahim had been receiving fund from his home country through a hawala channel. “We are yet to know whether he was involved with any other criminal syndicates in West Bengal. However, it is clear that during his stay in Baguiati, Ibrahim was in close contact with HuJI associates in Bangladesh.

CID officials said Mufti Ibrahim, whose name figured on the list of 95 most wanted people Dhaka had handed over to Delhi last year, had masterminded a failed attempt to attack Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in 2000.
It may be recalled that SOG officers have arrested a few more Bangladeshi criminals from Kolkata, in the past couple of months.

n2009/04/13 The Statesman & The Telegraph.

2.

............................................................................

Terror catch in ticket queue In Kolkata

Telegraph News, March, 19, 2009

An alleged Pakistani ex-jawan-turned-terrorist said to have sneaked into the city through Bangladesh for a secret mission in Jammu and Kashmir was arrested at Fairlie Place on Thursday afternoon.
Shahbaz Ismail, police said, is a member of Al Badar, a terror outfit based in Pakistan and backed by the al Qaida. The 27-year-old, police added, was a former jawan of a Pakistani paramilitary force. He had crossed the Bangladesh border near Murshidabad on Wednesday.

He was arrested while waiting in a queue for booking a ticket to Jammu at the Fairlie Place railway reservation office.

Police were acting on a tip-off from the Border Security Force. “They might have come to know when Ismail crossed the border. We found out that he would go to Fairlie Place to buy a rail ticket,” said an officer.

A team of officers was posted at the reservation office with Ismail’s photograph. The cops noticed him standing in queue in front of counter No. 20 and detained him. A cellphone with a Bangladeshi SIM card was found in the leather bag he was carrying.

“Ismail was sent to India by the terror outfit on a secret mission. We are yet to find out the details of the operation,” said Rajeev Kumar, the special inspector-general of the Special Task Force (STF).
Ismail told interrogators that he was born in Dera Ghazi and joined Pakistan Rangers (batch No. R39409), a paramilitary force, in 2004. “After a year of training, he was posted in Sialkot. He served the force till last year,” added Kumar.

Ismail said in his statement that he flew from Karachi to Dhaka on a Pakistani passport and waited there a few days for instructions from his team leader. He was then asked to enter India.
According to the Intelligence Bureau, over 80 per cent of the Al Badar recruits used to work for the Pakistan army and paramilitary forces. “The outfit wants to build up a troop with youths trained by the armed forces,” said an officer.

This is notable that Two other Terrorists were arrested at Sealdah (Kolkata) area just two weeks before.


Pak soldier-turned-ultra sent to foment terror held in Kolkata

Statesman News Service KOLKATA, March 19: Officers of Kolkata police's Special Task Force (STF) arrested a former Pakistani soldier in Fairlie Place this afternoon on charges of attempting to sponsor terrorist activities in India. Police said 27-year-old Sahabaz Ismail, had links with Al Badar, a Pakistan-based terrorist outfit. Sahabaz entered India from Bangladesh through the porous border in Murshidabad yesterday on a "specific assignment" that was handed to him by senior Al Badar members. He had planned to move to Jammu and Kashmir by train. He came to purchase a railway ticket at Fairlie Place today. Acting on a tip off from the Border Security Force (BSF) authorities, STF officers rounded him up near Fairlie Place around 3 p.m. today, said STF chief Mr Rajiv Kumar. Sahabaz, who used to work as a ranger with the Pakistani border force had left his job last year and joined a terrorist organisation. “During questioning, he confessed that he came to India for sponsoring terrorist activities in this country. He flew to Dhaka from Pakistan a few days ago and entered India through the porous border in Murshidabad yesterday,” Mr Kumar said. According to him, Sahabaz, a resident of Sumali village in Dera Ghazi Khan district in Punjab province of Pakistan, joined the Pakistani border force in December, 2004. His father's name is Mr Golam Farooq, a resident of Tehsa area in Pakistan. Sahabaz was posted at an outpost in Sialkot last year following completion of his training. He had graduated in Arts from a college in Pakistan in 2003, police said. After reaching Dhaka, he surrendered his Pakistani passport to Bangladesh police and then came to India without any valid travel documents. “A cellphone with a Bangladeshi SIM card and some papers were seized from Sahabaz. He will be produced in the Bankshall court tomorrow,” Mr Kumar said, refusing to comment on whether Sahabaz was involved in any blasts triggered in India. “He came to India yesterday for the first time. We are interrogating him to know if he has contacts in the city. He came to Kolkata from Murshidabad by a train this afternoon,” he added.

3.

Blast in Bengal town Alipurduar kills 2, Injured 18

Indian Express , Mar 19, 2009 at 0206 hrs IST

Kolkata: At least two persons were killed and 18 others injured, two of them seriously, when a bomb planted on a bicycle and fitted with a timer device exploded near a municipal market at Alipurduar in Japaiguri district, about 30 km from the Bengal-Assam border, on Wednesday morning. No group has claimed responsibility for the blast.
Senior police officials, however, said the blast had the trademark of northeast-based groups. They said that though the needle of suspicion was pointed at the Kamtapur Liberation Organization, there were a number of other outfits in the Assam-Bengal border region which specialised in bicycle blasts.

2 die, 16 hurt in Alipurduar blast

Statesman News Service JALPAIGURI, March 18

Two persons were killed and 16 injured in a bomb blast at the Supermarket complex of Alipurduar Choupathi today. The bomb exploded in a cycle stand at the Choupathi area around 11 a.m. killing one Sanatan Das on the spot. One Kamal Adhikari succumbed to his injuries in Alipurduar Hospital later. The hospital authorities referred six of the bomb victims to a Cooch Behar hospital.The IGP North Bengal, Mr KL Tamta, said that a full alert had been sounded in the border areas. “Two persons died and four others were seriously injured in the blast. The bomb squad has reached the spot. An investigation team consisting of five members has been constituted to probe the incident. An incident such as this before the elections concerns us,” the IGP, said.The explosion damaged all shops within a 100-metre radius of the blast site. “Business was peaking when the blast occurred. I heard a loud bang and was blinded by the flash of light. When I regained composure, I saw people running about with blood stained faces and clothes. I fell unconscious thereafter,” said a local trader Mr Ranjit Kumar Sha, describing the moment after the explosion.The explosion caused widespread panic and all shops and establishments closed for the day in the Choupathi area. The police reached the spot immediately after the incident and brought the situation under control. The minister of state for PWD as well as the Left Front Lok Sabha candidate for the Alipurduar constituency, Mr Manohar Tirkey, said the government would compensate the blast victims. “The crime proves anti-India elements are active in the region,” Mr Tirkey stated. The home secretary, Mr Ardhendu Sen, said: “Primarily it seems that gelatin sticks were used to trigger the explosion. Investigations have begun but we are yet to find any terror link in the blast.”

Experts say that such type of explosions in North Bengal in last few years authenticate the stronghold of the militant outfit in the region highlighting the security threat to public life by the KLO , HUJI and Groups anchored in Bangladesh and far North-East.

Blasts in North Bengal paralysed the public life in the recent past.

Nov 2006 :: Blast in New Jalpaiguri - Haldibari Passenger train near Belakoba station. 8 died, 50 injured.

Oct 2006 :: Blast in Barobisha , blast could not make havoc due to timer malfunction. Several injured.

June 1999 :: Blast in Jalpaiguri Rly Station. 9 died, 85 injured.

In all the cases self timer and gelatin sticks are used. Cycles are kept for the plant purpose of the local made bombs. In some cases the use of RDX cannot be turned down.

posted by : bengal spotlight media team// send your comment to bengalspotlight@gmail.com