Assam issues restrictions on mosques and Madrasa clerics: report

Guwahati: A couple of days after two clerics were arrested for terrorist activities, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Monday announced new rules for religious teachers at mosques in the state.

Religious teachers will have to register themselves on a government portal if they come from outside the state, according to the new guidelines as reported by NDTV.

The chief minister said that one of those arrested was an Imam who expanded the Jihadi network in many villages.

Sarma added that out of six Bangladeshi nationals who had entered Assam, police arrested one and five are still at large.

As per the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) set by the government, an Imam entering a village can be hired only after police verification.

Sarma claimed that Muslim society of Assam is extending their support to the new procedure.

However, residents of Assam are not required to register on the portal, according to the report.

The chief minister had earlier said that Assam had become a hotbed for " jihadi activities"

Police foiled five modules with links to Bangladeshi terrorist group Ansarul Islam and over 40 people were arrested in the state since March this year.

Police are closely monitoring the minority-dominated areas of lower and central Assam, news agency PTI reported, quoting officials.

The two clerics were arrested in Assam's Goalpara district two days ago for allegedly radicalising Muslim young men in the state as well as for their links with terror outfit Al Qaeda in Indian Subcontinent (AQIS).

They are now facing charges under the stringent Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA), according to senior police officer VV Rakesh Reddy.

The police have seized several books, posters and a mobile phone used to contact terrorists in Bangladesh from the two men, Mr Reddy reportedly said.