New Delhi: The main accused of Khagragarh blast, Jamat-ul-Mujaheedin of Bangladesh (JMB) terror group’s Golam Sarowar Rahat, was reportedly spotted along side Mohammad Yunus, head of Bangladesh’s interim government, while they were recently visiting the former PM Sheikh Hasina’s Aynaghar (Mirror Room) in Dhaka.
Mohammed Yunus went around the Mirror Room and along with him was Rahat, the main accused of the Khagragarh blast which occurred in West Bengal’s Burdwan district in 2014, killing two people.
‘Yunus’s friendship with jihadists’: Hasina’s son
Taking to X, Hasina’s son Sajib Wazed Joy has written a post along with the picture, showing Yunus with Rahat. He wrote: “Another piece of evidence of Yunus’s friendship with the jihadists: In a well-orchestrated plan, an armed gang ambushed a prison van and snatched away three convicted JMB jihadist terrorists in Trishal upazila of Mymensingh back on February 23, 2014. A police constable was killed as the gang of 10-15, all masked, opened fire and hurled crude bombs at the prison van.”
He added: “Six JMB jihadist terrorists were later detained in relation to the earlier event for attempting to kidnap the convicted terrorists. They were Golam Sarwar Rahat, Azmir, Al-Amin, Jakaria, Russell, and Syed Ziaul Islam.
One of these terrorists, JMB’s Golam Sarowar Rahat, was with Yunus during the time of his visit to the so-called ‘Aynaghar’…”
Another piece of evidence of Yunus’s friendship with the jihadists:
In a well-orchestrated plan, an armed gang ambushed a prison van and snatched away three convicted JMB jihadist terrorists in Trishal upazila of Mymensingh back on February 23rd, 2014. A police constable was… pic.twitter.com/eGGPMl7RvA
— Mohammad A. Arafat (@MAarafat71) February 12, 2025
The issue has sparked a huge political controversy.
What is the controversy?
During the ‘deportation phase’, agitators broke out of prisons in Bangladesh, freeing over a hundred hardline militants. Upon taking office, Mohammad Yunus, the head of the interim government, ordered the release of top militant leaders from JMB, ABT, and Hat, who had previously been sentenced to death or life imprisonment. Paradoxically, Yunus then declared that his government would not tolerate any militant activities. On February 13, Yunus visited the Mirror Room to assess the extent of “torture” experienced by army and police officials during Hasina’s tenure. Golam Sarwar Rahat reportedly shared numerous accounts of the alleged “torture” and “violations of human rights” that took place under Hasina’s rule.
Who is Golam Sarwar Rahat?
The second-in-command of the banned militant organisation JMB is the mastermind behind the Khagragarh blast. With the financial help of this cloth merchant, JMB opened modules in Khagragarh, Shimulia and Murshidabad in West Bengal’s East Burdwan. The mention of Salehan, Zahidul Islam alias Boma Mizan, and Rakibul Hasan in the intelligence documents of both parties refers to individuals who were significant in the context of political or militant activities.
Although Hasan was later killed in an encounter with the RAB, Salehan and Boma Mizan joined the JMB module elsewhere. The NIA was able to arrest Boma Mizan later from South India. But Salehan, a master of camouflage, is still at large. The ‘rising period’ of Bangladeshi militants in the region started after Salehan-Boma Mizan entered the scene. According to intelligence sources, Masum Mian of Narayanganj took part in the Mymensingh operation on Rahat’s orders. In the Khagragarh episode, he was wanted by the NIA and other detectives alias Sheikh Sajid. The Bidhannagar Commissionerate arrested terrorist Sajid alias Masum Mian from the Kolkata airport. A reward of Rs 10 lakh was announced by the NIA on Sajid’s head.
Rahat accused of brutal murders in Dhaka, Chittagong too
Golam Sarwar Rahat acted as an innocent victim and narrated stories of “torture” and “human rights violations” during Hasina’s tenure to Yunus. But, ironically, Rahat is accused of brutally murdering a total of seven people in Dhaka and Chittagong. On December 21, 2013, a spiritual leader, his son and four followers were hacked to death in a residence on Gopibagh Ramakrishna Mission Road in Dhaka by Rahat.
