Kolkata, May 24 (IANS) Pakistan links of one of the three Indian associates of Bangladesh-based Islamic fundamentalist group Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), who were arrested by the Special Task Force (STF) of West Bengal Police earlier, are being probed.

Sources said coded encrypted messages recovered from the mobile phones of Aazmal Hossain and Saheb Ali Khan, who were arrested from Birbhum district earlier this month, show their links only with associates of Bangladesh-based fundamentalist outfits, namely JMB, Hizb-ut-Tahrir (HUT), and Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT).

However, the sources added that similar coded and encrypted messages recovered from the mobile phones of the third arrested local associate of JMB, Abasuddin Molla, show his regular communication with some individuals based out of Pakistan as well as with those associated with the Jammu and Kashmir-based fundamentalist group Ansar Ghazwat-ul-Hind.

Molla was arrested from Paturi village in the minority-dominated Diamond Harbour area in South 24 Parganas district of West Bengal, just a day after two others were held from Birbhum district.

The cops have also recently updated a district court in Birbhum about their initial findings against these arrested accused, both from interrogation as well as through the coded and encrypted messages recovered from their mobile phones.

The investigating officials, the sources added, are currently interrogating the trio to get details of their recruits for the sleeper cells of JMB in the state.

Recently, the Union Home Ministry received information from intelligence agencies about the alleged role of illegal Bangladeshi intruders behind the violence and vandalism at the minority-dominated Murshidabad district over violent protests against the newly promulgated Waqf (Amendment) Act.

The names of JMB, HUT and ABT surfaced in that intelligence input. However, considering the geographical locations of the pockets where the tension and violence had been maximum this time, especially Samserganj, the possibility of ABT playing some role behind the latest violence sounded more logical.

On the eastern side of the international borders at Samserganj and Dhulian, is the Bangladeshi district of Chapai-Nawabganj, which is considered the stronghold of ABT.

The sources added that because of this geographical proximity, the chances of ABT’s involvement in the latest developments at Murshidabad are most likely.

–IANS

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