Maulana Tajuddin, one of the masterminds of the Aug 21 2004 attack who allegedly supplied the grenades, fled the country with a fake passport.
According to court documents and sources at the intelligence, officials of the Directorate General of Forces Intelligence (DGFI) escorted him to the airport to board a flight to Pakistan’s Karachi.
In 2014, the Interpol informed Bangladesh that he was traced in South Africa, following which Dhaka made official requests to Pretoria to deport him.
Tajuddin is the brother of former BNP deputy minister Abdus Salam Pintu, who is also one of the accused in the cases.
Pintu was known to be close to the then-state minister for home Lutfuzzaman Babar and BNP Senior Vice-Chairman Tarique Rahman, now living in London.
According to investigators, the attack was planned at the official residence of Pintu and his brother Tajuddin was responsible for planning and arrangement.
Their other brother Babul alias Ratul is also charged in court for the attacks.
On Aug 21, 2004, grenades were charged on an Awami League rally at Bangabandhu Avenue.
The then-leader of the opposition, Hasina was the leading speaker at the rally.
She was stepping off the truck, which was being used as a dais when the assailants hurled the grenades into the rally. Investigators said 13 to 14 grenades were detonated on the day.
Among the 24 people killed in the blasts was Bangladesh Mohila Awami League president Ivy Rahman, wife of senior Awami League leader Zillur Rahman, who was later to be elected the country’s president. The attack left Hasina with hearing problems.
Late Dhaka mayor Mohammad Hanif was among the over 500 people injured in the explosions.
Investigations revealed the attack aimed to eliminate Awami League President Hasina.
In 2006, Tajuddin was allowed a safe passage out from Bangladesh, which was arranged by then-DGFI officials Maj Gen ATM Amin, Lt Commander Saiful Islam and Lt Col Saiful Islam Joarder on clearance from Babar.
Lt Col Joarder arranged for the passport under the name of Md Badal and the boarding pass for a Karachi flight.
On Oct 10, DGFI officials Major Manirul Islam and Lt Commander Mizan escorted Tajuddin to the Dhaka airport and made sure he boarded the flight.
Tajuddin later moved to South Africa.
In 2008, the Interpol issued a red corner notice for Tajuddin and in 2014, Bangladesh was informed that Tajuddin has been located in South Africa.
Following the development, Dhaka and Pretoria agreed to sign an extradition treaty.
“The process is at its final stage. There’s no bar to bring him back. He will be extradited as soon as the deal is inked,” State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shahriar Alam told Bangla Tribune.
Sources said Tajuddin has close links with three Pakistan-based Islamist militant organisations Harkatul Mujahideen, Hijbul Mujahideen and Lashkar-e-Tayaba. Any of the militant outfits might have provided him with grenades.
Tajuddin also has close ties with detained Huji leader Mufti Abdul Hannan who studied with him at a Quwami madrasa in Lahore of Pakistan in the 80s.
Mufti Hannan, one of the masterminds of the grenade attacks that left 24 AL leaders and activists dead and scores injured, is also a charge-sheeted accused in the cases.
According to intelligence officials, the statements of Huji leaders, held with grenades, suggest that Pakistan-based militant organisations sent several consignments of grenades to Islamist militants in India via Bangladesh.
Tajuddin was also a liason in Bangladesh for South Asia-based Islamist militant outfits, which was revealed in the statement by Pakistan national Adbul Mazed alias Yousuf Batt.
Batt, who speaks fluent Bangla and married a Bangladeshi woman, was sent to Bangladesh in 2000 to build a safehome in Bangladesh for Pakistani terrorists.
Tajuddin went to Pakistan in the 90s for higher studies at Qawmi madrasas, where he was radicalised and trained in militancy.
He returned in 2001 and started to work at Madrasa in Dhaka. But quit a few years later and involved in business with his wife’s family.
People familiar with the investigation said Tajuddin was involved with Islamist political outfit Khelafote Majlish, as part of his plan to portray himself to the people as an ordinary and pious man.
But it all changed after the Oct 1, 2005 arrest of HuJI leader Mufti Hannan.
But as a trained militant Tajuddin had kept arrangement in case something went wrong.
Soon after coming back from Pakistan, he obtained the passport with the name of Md Badal.
The passport issued to him on Jul 3, 2001 from Rajshahi, shows he is the son of Dr Mahidduin, which is actually his father’s name, and born on Feb 1, 1973.
However, the permanent address was in Rajshahi, though Tajuddin’s family hails from Tangail.
The passport obtained citing emergency travel to India for medical treatment, said he was a businessman.
Investigations revealed that a Rajshahi metro police’s deputy commissioner issued the no-objection certificate for issuing the passport.
One Dr Azizul Haque attested the application for the passport.
Security analysts say that it was a common practice of militants to prepare documents with fake names as getaway plans in case some goes wrong. But the unusual thing in this case was one of the top intelligence agencies of the country helped to escape him.