Among those arrested in the latest sweep were 48 suspected militants, many of them members of banned group Jamayetul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), police said. More than 3,000 people, including suspected ordinary criminals with existing warrants against them, were arrested on Saturday after police launched a controversial anti-militant drive across the Muslim-majority nation. Experts say a previous government crackdown on opponents, including a ban on Jamaat following a protracted political crisis, has pushed many towards extremism. But Bangladesh opposition parties have accused police of using the crackdown to suppress political dissent, saying many of those arrested were “ordinary and innocent people”. Although the country is officially secular, around 90% of Bangladesh’s 160 million-strong population is Muslim, while some 8% is Hindu.

Source: Mint June 12, 2016 13:52 UTC