Burdwan blast: NIA chargesheets Assam's Sahanur, Shaikul

The NIA, which is probing the Burdwan blast case, on Monday submitted a chargesheet in a court in Kolkata which included the names of two Assam-based operatives of the Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) - Sahanur Alom and Shaikul Islam Khan.

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) filed the chargesheet against 21 individuals, including four Bangladeshi nationals, for their involvement in the JMB conspiracy to overthrow the existing democratic government in Bangladesh through violent terrorist acts and replace it with a hardline Sharia-based Islamic regime.

The two operatives are in judicial custody at present.

The NIA probe, which was spread over four states, revealed that the JMB established its network in India primarily in West Bengal, Assam and Jharkhand.

"Its activities in India primarily included recruitment, radicalisation and training of vulnerable youths in a systematic and organised manner," the chargesheet said.

During investigation, the NIA had named 32 accused people, of which 16 have been arrested so far.

More than 250 witnesses have been examined and around 100 searches conducted in many places across the three states, leading to seizure of huge volumes of documents, computers, explosives, chemicals, arms and ammunition, and other incriminating materials, it said.

Sahanur Alom, his wife Sujina Begum and many others including Shaikul were arrested by Assam Police last year for their links with the JMB and also with the Burdwan blast.