Musadik Hussain and Ikramul Islam were arrested by Morigaon police in Assam
Two persons, suspected to have links with Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT), a terror group based in Bangladesh and an affiliate of Al Qaeda in Sub-Continent (AQIS), have been arrested in Assam. Musadik Hussain and Ikramul Islam were arrested by Morigaon police. Police sources said Ikramul was an Imam. Police were on the lookout for the duo for more than a month. They are said to be part of the Morigaon module of ABT and were led by a cleric called Mufti Mustafa, who was arrested earlier.
Earlier, a madrasa was demolished in Morigaon district over suspected terror links with an AQIS module. Four madrasas have been demolished in Assam in the past month over alleged links with terror outfits and attempts to set up "jihadi sleeper cells" in the state.
Last month, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had claimed that Assam had become a hotbed of "jihadi activities". He also announced that religious teachers at mosques and madrasas in Assam would be required to register themselves on a government portal if they came from outside the state. "Our only intention is to see that madrasas are not used for jihadi work," the Chief Minister said.
Since this April, Assam Police have arrested more than 40 people and a strict vigil is being maintained, particularly in the minority-dominated areas of lower and central Assam, in order to thwart any attempt by AQIS-backed terror modules to disturb peace and harmony. Many of those arrested were mosque Imams or teachers at private madrasas.