New JMB Offshoot: Shahadat, Selim call each other chief

Friday, July 10, 2009

The top leaders of banned JMB's splinter Islam O Muslim Abdur Rahim alias Shahadat and Selim alias Saifullah designated each other as the chief of the offshoot organisation during remand, police said yesterday.

Police said Shahadat, Selim and two others--Sajedur Rahman alias Hanif and Jalal Uddin--had already given important information but the police now need to put them face to face for interrogation.

M Abdul Kuddus Chowdhury, additional superintendent of police in Rajshahi, said, "A face to face interrogation has now become crucial as Shahadat and Selim are pointing at each other as the chief of the new group."

At the end of a five-day remand yesterday, Shahadat, Sajedur and Jalal were produced before the third court of judicial magistrate in Rajshahi in the afternoon. Police sought a seven-day fresh remand against them.

The court of Asaf-ud-Doula granted only three day's fresh remand, said M Hedayetul Islam, acting court inspector of Rajshahi. Arrested on June 30, they were taken on a five-day remand on July 4 by the Special Branch of police.

Meanwhile, the Chapainawabganj police placed Selim before a court seeking a seven-day remand after Rab-5 handed him over to police on Wednesday.

The court of Chief Judicial Magistrate Basudev Roy sent Selim to jail custody deciding to hear on the remand prayer by Sunday, said police.

However, police had yesterday filed three cases--two for possessing illegal arms and one for attacking on the law enforcers hindering government task--against Selim with the Chapainawabganj Sadar Police Station.

Rab-5 and police seized a 9mm pistol, seven local one-shot guns and 20 bullets from Shahadat and Selim's possession.

Quoting Shahadat police said, Selim floated the new offshoot Islam O Muslim in a bid to save himself from JMB's wrath.

According to Shahadat, Selim as a regional JMB commander of Rajshahi used to handle JMB fund for collecting arms and ammunition. He swindled the JMB mainstream of Tk 1.5 lakh and fled to India several months ago.

One and a half months ago, some 10 to 15 militants, including Shahadat and Selim held meetings twice at Gomostapur in Chapainwabganj to discuss the new offshoot, said the police.

But they were yet to form a full-fledged committee, said the police quoting Shahadat.

In the meetings, they discussed fighting tactics, using small weapons instead of bombs and grenades, and their main goal--reorganising inactive JMB members.

Shahadat told police that Selim is the entrepreneur and chief of Islam O Muslim, not him.

Shahadat, during his remand, had also mentioned seven forearms that were recovered from Selim's possession.

Our Jhenidah correspondent adds: Police yesterday arrested a suspected member of banned Islamist militant outfit Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) from the town following an arrest warrant.

Officer-in-Charge of Kotchandpur Police Station arrested Abdul Matin, 32, from his drug shop at Arabpur around 5:00pm.

Police said a Chapainawabganj court issued the arrest warrant against Matin after his name was disclosed by five JMB men accused in a case filed on October 25 last year.

Matin, son of Taib Ali, hails from Laxmipur village under Kotchandpur upazila.

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