They are Rezaul and Azad.

On Saturday morning, one person identifying himself as Siddikur Rahman alias Bangla Bhai talked to Nilphamari Executive Engineer A K S M Mostafa Kamal over telephone and demanded Tk 4 lakh for treatment of one of their sick activists.

It was finally settled over phone that Tk one lakh would be given and the money would be handed over to Bangla Bhai men at the LGED (Local Government and Engineering Department) Monday morning.

Being informed by the LGED official, some plainclothes policemen waited at the office in the guise of employees and some took position outside.

A young man went to the office at about 11 am, identified himself as Bangla Bhai activist Rezaul and handed over a letter with a so-called a code number (525) to the Executive Engineer.

Police arrested him immediately and asked him to call his compatriot there.

On a telephone call from Reazul, another young man named Azad went to the LGED. Police nabbed him.

A case has been lodged with Nilphamari thana.

Nilphamari thana Sub Inspector Abdul Bari told this correspondent that the arrested persons were being interrogated to know whether they are actually activists of Jagrata Muslim Janata Bangladesh (JMJB) run by Bangla Bhai.

Rezaul identified himself as son of one Abdul Haque Patowari of Sri Rampur village in Mohespur upazila in Jessore district. His associate Azad hails from Noakhali district, he said.