Police still not sure of motive for MP Anar murder

DB says all seven people who ‘directly’ took part in the killing have been arrested

Police are none the wiser about the motive for the murder of MP Anwarul Azim Anar in India.

DMP Additional Commissioner (DB) Harun-Or-Rashid said, “It is not yet clear why he was killed. We are seriously investigating all the aspects - including money transactions – that we have heard about."

The remarks came at a press conference held at the DMP media centre on Thursday afternoon.

Two suspects in the murder - Faisal Ali Saji and Mostafizur Rahman - were arrested in Chattogram's Sitakunda Pahar area on Wednesday. They were then brought to Dhaka by a plane.

Harun said law enforcers will ask for Faisal and Mostafizur to be remanded for 10 days. "Counting these two, the seven people who directly participated in this killing mission have been arrested."

According to police, the two arrestees were staying in a Kali temple after identifying themselves as Palash Roy and Shimul Roy.

Harun said seven people - led by Shimul Bhuiyan - participated in the murder of Anar at the Sanjeeva Gardens apartment building in Kolkata. So far, five of the suspected perpetrators have been arrested in Bangladesh.

They are Shimul Bhuiyan, Tanvir Bhuiyan, Celesty Rahman, Faisal and Mostafizur.

Apart from them, butcher Jihad Howlader was arrested in India and Siam in Nepal. Siam was later handed over to Indian police.

The suspected mastermind of Anar's murder - Akhtaruzzaman Shaheen - left for the United States after the incident, said DB chief Harun. "Kolkata police are seriously looking into bringing him back through Interpol."

Anar, member of parliament for the Jhenaidah-4 constituency, went missing on May 11 after going to India for medical treatment.

His friend, gold merchant Gopal Biswas, filed a general diary in Kolkata following his disappearance. Investigations were launched in both countries.

Then on May 22, Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan said in a press conference in Dhaka that MP Anar had been killed in a pre-meditated manner in an apartment in Kolkata.

On the day Anar's murder was reported, his daughter Mumtarin Ferdoush Dorin filed a case with the Sher-e-Bangla Nagar police alleging that her father had been abducted with the intent to murder. A murder case was also filed in Kolkata.

Kolkata police are investigating the murder case and Dhaka police are investigating the abduction to murder case.

Nine people have been arrested so far in Dhaka and Kolkata in connection with the murder. Two of them are Jhenaidah Awami League leaders.