Bangladesh terror outfit in state for 2 years, has three bases says ATS

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The arrests of five Bangladeshis over the past couple of days, for their links to members of the banned terror outfit Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT), have led the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) to believe that ABT is far more evolved that the Indian Mujahideen (IM), as the group has managed to spend more than two years in the state and has also created bases in Pune, Raigad and Thane.

Wider network
According to the police, one of the suspects Mohammad Habbuddin Rehman Habib alias Raj Jebus Mandal, 31, worked as a supervisor at a defence installation in Pune. Two of his accomplices were arrested three days ago, while two others were nabbed on March 19 from Raigad and Ambernath. Sources in the ATS said phones of the arrested accused have been sent for cyber analysis as they were in touch with people from Bangladesh. This might help the cops to get information about the money trail of the terror group.

The state agency suspects the terror network to be a bigger one, and hence, a probe is being carried out to find out whether other people are involved in the case or not.

Probe on
An ATS source said efforts were on to find out the motive behind the current module of ABT. They are also trying to check whether the outfit has any connection with the Bodh Gaya blast that took place in January this year.

Speaking to mid-day, a reliable source said, "The five Bangladeshis have been arrested for providing shelter as well as financial support to members of the ABT in Maharashtra."

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