Narayanganj’s multiple murder accused Nur Hossain has been arrested from Baguiati, not far from Kolkata’s Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport, late on Saturday. A top West Bengal police official said a revolver and several rounds of ammunition was found in possession of Nur Hossain at the time of the arrest. The official, who was not willing to be named because he was not authorised to speak to the media, said Nur Hossain was staying in a fourth floor apartment of multi-storey Indraprastha apartment complex for a while. “Locals knew him to be someone who was sick and had come to Kolkata for medical treatment,” the official said. He said residents of the high-rise building including its security guard had told them that Nur Hossain was staying in this apartment for more than a month. If that is found to be correct, then it would point to Nur Hossain having fled Bangladesh not long after the seven bodies, including those of councillor Nazrul Islam and lawyer Chandan Kumar Sarkar, were found floating in the Shitalakkhya River in Narayanganj.Nur Hossain, a councillor in Narayanganj City, was arrested by a team from the Special Task Force of the West Bengal police around 11:30pm. He will be produced in a court in West Bengal’s North 24-Parganas district on Sunday and police will seek his remand to facilitate interrogation. “We are trying to confirm that the arrested person is indeed the Nur Hossain who is wanted in Bangladesh for murder and other crimes, but he matches the pictures we have of Nur Hossain,” the police official said. But the official was not in a position to discuss Nur Hossain’s possible extradition to Bangladesh to stand trial for the multiple murders at Narayanganj. “That is a decision that can be taken at a much higher level. I don’t see that happening immediately, though I understand Bangladesh had got the Interpol to issue a red corner notice and sought its help to arrest Nur Hossain,” the official said. Bangladesh police had earlier arrested Hasmat Ali Hasu, working as cashier for fugitive councillor Nur Hossain, from Jessore in May. But Bangladesh’s State Minister for Home Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal denied the arrest. Hasu was suspected to be attempting to escape to India to join Nur Hossain. It is possible that Nur Hossain would have taken the same route to flee to Kolkata. Hossain is believed to be the mastermind of the Narayanganj multiple murders , for which some RAB officers are now on the dock. Assasinated councillor Nazrul’s relatives allege that the RAB officers carried out the murders at the behest of Nur Hossain and then helped Nur Hossain escape to India. But the RAB has denied the charge. Three officers of RAB-11 including its commander ex-Lt Col Tarek Sayeed Mohammad were removed from the elite force even before the bodies were found. They were eventually sent on forced retirement after being accused of carrying out the murders. The RAB ordered an internal probe to check on allegations that the three officers carried out the murders. The three RAB officers have now been arrested after a High Court order for their arrest. Nur Hossain, who rose from being a transport worker to a city councillor, had set up a booming illegal sand trade on the banks of Shitalakhyya. Nazrul Islam, also an Awami League leader like Nur Hossain, was his arch-rival in Narayanganj. –bdnews24.com
