Northeast on alarm as Bangladesh releases terror group chief

The release of Jashimuddin Rahmani, the chief of the Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT), an al-Qaida-affiliated terrorist outfit by the Bangladesh interim government is a concerning matter for India, particularly Assam and Tripura as the terrorist group has been trying to establish a jihadi network with the help of sleeper cells.

Rahmani, who was jailed for the murder of a blogger, Rajib Haider on February 15, 2013 was released on parole from the Kashimpur High Security Central Jail in Gazipur, on August 26, reported the Dhaka Tribune.

Several terrorists linked to the Ansarullah Bangla Team have been arrested in India earlier, with two terrorists linked to ABT, Bahar Mia and Rarely Mia being arrested at Guwahati railway station by the Assam Police in May, 2023.

Sources told India Today that the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) has reportedly partnered with the ABT to carry out terrorist attacks in India's northeastern states.

In 2022, LeT had collaborated with ABT to establish a base in Bengal with the aim of launching attacks in India, according to sources.

Intelligence inputs also indicated that around 50 to 100 ABT cadres were planning to infiltrate Tripura.

The Assam Police has arrested ABT terrorists many times, foiling the terror group's plans to establish a network in Assam.

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had also said that ABT jihadis did not use regular communication tools but highly encrypted devices to avoid getting detected.

ABT is an affiliate of a terror outfit, namely Al-Qaida in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS), which is banned in India.