NIA court sentenced top Bangladeshi terrorist to 29 years in jail

A special NIA court here on Wednesday sentenced the India head of Bangladesh-based terrorist organisation Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen (JMB) to 29 years in jail and imposed a fine of Rs 35,000 for his involvement in the 2014 Bardhaman blast case.

Kausar, a resident of Bangladesh’s Maymansingh division, was convicted by the court under sections of the Indian Penal Code, the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, the Arms Act and the Foreigners Act.

He is also a charge-sheeted accused in another NIA case relating to the Bodh Gaya blast which took place in January 2018.

On October 2, 2014, a powerful bomb blast took place at the first floor of a rented house in the busy Khagragarh locality of West Bengal’s Burdwan district. An Improvised Explosive Device (IED) had accidentally gone off at the time of its fabrication by the members of the JMB. Two terrorists had succumbed to injuries.

The case was initially registered by the West Bengal Police and it was subsequently taken over by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on October 10, 2014.

The NIA investigation revealed a conspiracy by the JMB to radicalise, recruit and provide training in arms and explosives to its members in India for committing terrorist acts and waging war against the democratically established governments of India and Bangladesh. A large number of IEDs, explosives, hand grenades and training videos were recovered.

A total of 33 accused were charge sheeted by the NIA for the commission of various offences in the case. Out of the 33 accused, 31 have been arrested. Earlier, 30 accused were convicted and sentenced to various terms by the NIA special court, Kolkata.

The trial against the remaining two absconding charge-sheeted accused continues.

Source: The Wire