Maulana Mohammad Russell of Green Crescent Madrasa used to motivate his students to take part in jihad, which investigators believe he did to raise them as militants in the future. "Our huzur [teacher] Russell often told us that Allah has created us to establish the Almighty's rule through jihad," one of three madrasa students told investigators who visited their homes yesterday. "The sermon was given after Asr prayers," an investigator of the discovery of a mini arms factory at the madrasa told reporters. Wishing anonymity, the investigator said the students aged between seven and eight were given such preaching to turn them religiously blind and involve them in militant activities.
The madrasa students had to recite the Quran after Fazr prayers and then participate in free hand exercise under Maulana Russell who is now on a 10-day remand for interrogation at the Taskforce for Interrogation cell in Dhaka. Investigators are quizzing Russell to find out others involved with the militant den at Ram Keshab village in Borhanuddin upazila of Bhola. The Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) busted the madrasa on Tuesday and recovered huge firearms, ammunition and explosives.
Three other suspected militants--Abul Kalam, Abdul Halim and Jasim--are also on a 10-day remand for interrogation by a six-member team led by ASM Azimul Huq, assistant superintendent of police for Lalmohan circle.
Sources said police collected the addresses of five orphans in different villages in the upazila yesterday and took statements from three of them, reports our Barisal correspondent. Eleven children of the orphanage are now under the custody of their relatives and local government representatives.
Meanwhile, officials investigating the incident said apart from the 11 names mentioned in the first information report, they have detected several other people who used to visit the Green Crescent Madrasa. The investigators however refused to divulge their names. They also said accused Saifuddin Badal, who has been absconding, was tasked with drawing funds from the madrasa's bank account and spent those. "Once we can arrest Badal, we may make important breakthrough into the investigation," said an investigator.
Meanwhile, law enforcers continued drives to hunt down the seven accused mentioned in the FIR. They are Maulana Mufti Mohiuddin, Saifuddin Badal, Humayun Ahmed, Abul Kalam, Hasan Saifuddin, Yunus Sharif and Mizanur Rahman.