Family of detainee in Chittagong Naval Base blast goes into hiding

The family of a man detained over the 'Molotov cocktail' explosions at a mosque inside the BNS Issa Khan Base of Bangladesh Navy in Chittagong on Friday have fled their house in Dinajpur.

Liton Haider Chief Crimes Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 19 Dec 2015, 02:26 PM
Updated : 19 Dec 2015, 04:49 PM

Arrestee Ramjan Ali is the son of Ahsan Habib of Mukundapur village under Dinajpur’s Kaharole Upazila.

According to locals, Habib is the imam at a mosque in Chhoto Bhadga village near Mukundapur. Ali’s elder brother ‘Rashed’ was living with his father.

bdnews24.com’s Dinajpur correspondent on Saturday noon found the main entrance of the house under lock and key but the backdoor open.

A man named ‘Toriqul’, who identified himself as the domestic help of the family, was inside the house.

Hailing from neighbouring Baghmara village, the man said Habib, along with Rashed, had gone to his in-laws’ house at Kalyani village under the district’s Birganj Upazila on Friday afternoon.

When asked why they had gone to Birganj so ‘suddenly’, Toriqul remained silent.

The defence ministry said on Friday that six people had been wounded in the two 'Molotov cocktail' explosions after Juma prayers.

According to Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR) Directorate, a man was arrested with several unexploded explosive devices.

Toriqul said RAB members had searched Ramjan Ali’s house on Friday night.

Ali’s neighbour Tariqul Islam, a rural medical practitioner, said Ali had studied at Dinajpur Polytechnic Institute but was not sure whether he had completed his studies.

According to Islam, locals were under the impression that Ali was working with a readymade garment factory but he had actually joined the Bangladesh Navy as a batman.

He said Ali’s family members were very pious and Ali did not mingle much with neighbours.

Media reports said two people were arrested following the explosions on Friday.

RAB-12 officer Mohiuddin Faruqi told bdnews24.com that he had heard of the detention of a man called Abdul Mannan, who possibly hails from Tangail’s Basail.

A top RAB official, wishing anonymity, told bdnews24.com that they were interrogating several people and had made some headway in the investigation.

(Additional reporting by bdnews24.com's Chittagong Bureau, Dinajpur and Tangail Correspondents)