Nazrul Islam, 32, was on a two-week business tour in India and was staying at a hotel in Malda before being kidnapped on the outskirts of the town.

His relatives in Bangladesh told police that they received a $17,400 ransom demand from the abductors, reports AFP.

"One has been arrested in connection with the abduction. We hope to make a breakthrough in a day or two," local police chief Sasikanta Pujari told AFP.

Traders in the export-import zone of Malda have called strike in protest against the abduction.

Meanwhile, Bangladesh Deputy High Commissioner in Kolkata told The Daily Star last night that they are yet to get any information on the incident.