Guwahati: National Investigation Agency (NIA) has arrested six people from Assam’s Barpeta district for their alleged involvement in ‘jihadi’ activities and attempts to radicalise youths for induction into Imam Mahmuder Kafila (IMK), an offshoot of the Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), officials said on Tuesday.The arrests followed searches launched by the anti-terror agency on Monday night in areas under Howly, Barpeta Road and Sorbhog police stations, officials said.Three people were nabbed from the Sorbhog area, two from Barpeta Road and one from Howly.The arrested persons were identified as Faruk Abdullah, Zakir Hussain and Chandbar Ali from Sorbhog; Mustafizur Rahman from Barpeta Road; Yakub Ali from Nishuka; and Rakibul Islam from Jashihatipara village in Howly.The NIA also conducted searches in West Bengal and Kerala and seized documents and electronic devices, including a laptop and mobile phones, officials said.Mustafizur Rahman, who owns a clothing store, had been arrested by the Assam Police’s Special Task Force in March and released on bail three months later. NIA personnel arrested him from his residence, officials said.Rakibul Islam, who runs a poultry business in Daporijo in Arunachal Pradesh, had returned home around 15 days ago. His father, Ali Mahmud, said the document provided by the NIA stated that Rakibul had been arrested for allegedly being associated with a group called ‘Purba Akash’ (Eastern Sky) on Telegram.NIA investigations have revealed the alleged involvement of the accused in a conspiracy by IMK to expand the JMB’s terror ideology in West Bengal and the northeastern states, including Assam and Tripura, officials said.The alleged conspiracy involved promoting the organisation’s extremist agenda, radicalising vulnerable youths and expanding its network in India, they said.
