In the wee hours of Saturday morning, as RAB and law enforcement officers, along with villagers, were crowding around Mumtaz Ali's neighbouring house, the cries and bustle disturbed UP member Lutfar Rahman's sleep.
Later, he discovered that the RAB had taken three people from that home into custody, among them UP Chairman Mahmudul Alam Babu, the main suspect of journalist Golam Rabbani Nadim murder.
This is how Lutfar Rahman described Chairman Babu's arrest. According to him, law enforcement officials surrounded Mumtaz Ali's home on Saturday between 4am and 5am, and at one point they arrested UP Chairman Babu and his two associates there.
Debiganj police station Officer-in-Charge Jamal Hossain said: "Although RAB did not formally inform the local police about their plans, news of the raid quickly spread throughout the area. It was confirmed that three individuals, including Chairman Babu, were taken into custody. The RAB team then departed for Dhaka with the arrestees."
Panchagarh Superintendent of Police SM Sirajul Huda said: "RAB did not seek assistance or notify local law enforcement about the operation. An official announcement regarding the arrest is expected to be made in Dhaka by RAB."
Sources from the local community disclosed that several individuals from the Jamalpur region settled in different areas of Debiganj Upazila in Panchagarh district. That is why Chairman Babu sought refuge at the residence of his distant uncle, Mumtaz Ali.
Speculation arose that Babu and his accomplices may have been planning to flee to India through the Debiganj border.
Nadim's wife, Monira Begum, filed a case at the Bokshiganj police station against 22 individuals, accusing them of involvement in her husband's murder on Saturday.
Sadhurpara UP Chairman Mahmudul Alam Babu is the principal accused.
Before this, the Awami League temporarily suspended Mahmudul Alam Babu from the party.
Nadim, a Jamalpur district correspondent for Banglanews24.com, died on Thursday while receiving treatment, following an attack by unidentified assailants in Bokshiganj on June 14.
To date, 14 individuals have been arrested in connection with the murder of the journalist.
The arestees are said to be followers of Sadhurpara UP Chairman Mahmudul Alam Babu.
