Top terror Subrata Bain arrested in Kushtia

Notorious fugitive and top-listed Subrata Bain was arrested along with an associate during a three-hour army operation in Kushtia town early Tuesday morning.

According to the Inter-Services Public Relations Directorate (ISPR), the elite operation began around 5:00 AM and concluded by 8:00 AM at a rented house in Kalishankarpur area of the district town.

Subrata and his aide were taken into custody from a ground-floor flat adjacent to the Sonar Bangla Mosque. Details of the operation will be formally disclosed in a press briefing scheduled for 5:00 PM today, the ISPR said.

However, local police officials confirmed their presence at the scene later in the day but stated they were not involved in the operation. Kushtia police spokesperson Faisal Mahmud and officer-in-charge Mosharraf Hossain acknowledged reports of the arrest but could not provide official confirmation or specifics about the agency behind it.

Eyewitnesses and residents of the building, which is home to several university students, reported that the ground floor had been quietly rented about a month and a half ago by two men who kept to themselves. The men claimed to be involved in business and had little interaction with neighbors.

“Around 5:00 in the morning, several army vehicles including a black microbus arrived. Around 50 personnel cordoned off the area and entered the building. They reassured students in the upper floors and focused their search on the ground floor,” said a tenant.

Residents described how one of the arrested individuals resembled Subrata Bain, who was later seen being taken away in handcuffs with his face partially covered. His associate was tied with ropes and also escorted into the waiting vehicle.

Subrata Bain is a convicted criminal and was a key figure in the notorious “Seven Star” gang, responsible for at least 30 murders in Dhaka alone. His criminal activities date back to the early 1990s, with his first high-profile murder being that of JSD student leader Murad in 1991.

He fled to India in 2003, evading a law enforcement crackdown, and reportedly settled in West Bengal, where he established businesses and acquired property.

He was one of 23 top terrorists listed by Bangladesh’s Ministry of Home Affairs in 2001, with bounties announced for their capture.