Following important leads in Burdwan blast: NIA

The NIA, which is probing the Oct 2 Burdwan blast that killed two suspected militants, Wednesday said it was following important leads in the investigation and summoned one person for questioning on the basis of information provide by the accused - six of whom are now under arrest.

The National Investigation Agency personnel conducted searches at various places including the residence and shop of the arrested accused Hashem Moulla, alias Badre Alam in Burdwan of West Bengal.

"The NIA team also collected swabs for explosive traces from the vehicle of the owner of the house where the blast took place on Oct 2," the agency said in a media statement.

The team seized a laptop from the ground floor shop of the house at Burdwan district's Khagragarh where the explosion occurred leaving one more militant injured.

"The questioning of arrested accused by NIA continued today (Wednesday) and some important leads are being followed. On the basis of information provided by the accused, one person was summoned for questioning in Birbhum," the statement said.

A suspected computer, which might have been used for communication, was also seized from a shop in Birbhum district.

Amid allegations that the state police was destroying evidence to cover up, the union home ministry Oct 9 directed the NIA to take up the investigation into the incident in which the Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh is suspected to be involved.

While the opposition Communist Party of India-Marxist and the Bharatiya Janata Party had demanded an NIA probe alleging that the ruling Trinamool Congress was indulging in a cover up to hide its "terror links", the Mamata Banerjee government had opposed the central agency probe contending it to be an attack on federalism.

Six people including two women have been arrested for the blast.

The central agency Monday had secured the custody of the two women and Badrul Alam Molla- three key accused in the case.

Besides the six arrests in Bengal, six others have been nabbed from Barpeta district in Assam for their alleged involvement in the case.

NIA teams are camping in Burdwan, Kolkata, Nadia and some parts of Assam in connection with the investigation.

A number of key players in the conspiracy have been identified and police as well as intelligence agencies have been alerted to look-out for them.