HuJI terrorists had last August planned to kill Sheikh Hasina

NEW DELHI: Amid disclosure of links between terror operatives in Bangladesh and West Bengal’s Burdwan district, Dhaka’s intelligence agencies have claimed they have unearthed a plan by HuJI to assassinate prime minister Sheikh Hasina and top ministers and leaders of ruling Awami League.

HuJI terrorists had last August planned to assassinate Hasina and flee to West Bengal, according to sources in the Bangladesh security establishment. The claim comes close on heels of NIA alleging that there were links between JMB and terror operatives in West Bengal.

The sources claimed that the HuJI plot was unearthed after interrogation of nabbed terrorists and added the plan to target the Bangladeshi PM was still active. Bangladesh daily Ittefaq, quoting top sources of Bangladesh security establishment, reported on Monday: "HuJI planned to target other senior leaders of ruling the Awami League and intellectuals who favoured creation of Bangladesh in 1971. The original plan was made in Dhaka Central prison by HuJI leaders who were arrested earlier for targeting Hasina during a rally on August 21, 2004."

Bangaldeshi intelligence is supposed to have got the information from HuJI operative Maulana Rafiq Ahmed, according to the newspaper. HuJI had also planned to carry out attacks in various cities and towns of Bangladesh to destablise the Hasina government. HuJI, JMB and other radical terror groups have been targeted by the Hasina government as part of counter-terror operation since 2009. The recent crackdown against HuJI was launched last Thursday in and around Dhaka.