Shahnur Alom, one of the 12 accused of the Burdwan blast, seems to have slipped the police net even as the police have claimed that the fugitive is hiding somewhere in the Dhubri district of Assam.
The Assam Police, who have been working jointly with the National Investigating Agency (NIA), on Tuesday night arrested two youth for their links with Shahnur and they are being interrogated to get details about him.
"Based on specific information, we have launched an operation at Hatsingimari area in Dhubri district. Two youths were arrested and they divulged some details about Alom," said Dhubri Superintendent of Police Mridulananda Sarma.
"We launched another operation in a suspected hideout of Shahnur but he seems to have sensed danger and escaped. However, we are closing in the net and it's only a matter of time that he is arrested," said Sarma while adding that the two arrested youth were closely associated with Shahnur and it is believed that he was taking shelter there.
Shahnur alias 'Doctor' is one of the prominent activists of the Jamaat-ul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), which was involved in the Burdwan blast of October 1. The NIA, which is probing the Burdwan blast, had announced a bounty of `5 lakh on Shahnur.
While Shahnur has been absconding since last month, his wife Sujina Begum-who was also trained for jehad from madrassas in Burdwan-is in police custody and is being interrogated jointly by the police and the NIA. The Assam Police and NIA had raided the house of Shahnur several times in the last month and searched the bank accounts of Shahnur and his wife.
last week, police had arrested another close aide of Shahnur from Nalbari district of Assam and recovered several incriminating documents from his possession including leaflets and books on Islamic terror activities and jehad.