The alleged mastermind of freethinking writer-publisher Shahjahan Bachchu's murder was killed in a ‘shootout’ with police at Khashmahal Baluchar in Sirajdikhan Upazila early Thursday, police say.

The suspect was identified as Abdur Rahman, a member of banned militant outfit Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB).
Rahman was arrested from Gazipur on Sunday, said Musnhiganj Detective Branch officer Nazrul Islam.
On Thursday, police took Rahman along in a raid at the Munshiganj's Sirajdikhan Upazila to nab his accomplices, he added.



"Sensing presence of the law enforcers, Rahman’s cohorts opened fire, forcing the lawmen to retaliate", Nazrul told Bangla Tribune.
Suspect Rahman was caught in the firing while his accomplices managed to flee, police said adding that three of their men were injured in the shootout.




Hand grenades, firearms and a motorbike were seized from the spot.
Shahjahan Bachchu, 60, an outspoken proponent of secular principles and owner of a publishing house, was gunned down in his ancestral village Kakaldi in Munsihiganj on the evening of Jun 11.