After state minister Lutfuzzaman Babar, it was now Home Minister Altaf Hossain Chowdhury's turn to speak strongly against criminals, surrounded by some listed criminals.

The home minister was seen accompanied by the criminals while he was visiting the Buddhist temple at Hingala under Raozan upazila yesterday, where a Buddhist monk, Gyanojoti Mohasthabir, was killed last Sunday.

The alleged criminals who were snapped along with the home minister were identified as Abu Hanif alias Champaiya, Rezaur Rahman Azam alias Kura Azam, Billal Talukder, Abbas chairman, Hasan Chowdhury and Taiyab Sultan, sources and eyewitnesses said.

Of them, alleged notorious criminal Champaiya has three criminal cases pressed against him, including one murder case (BCL leader Abu Taleb murder) in which charges were pressed against him. Besides, he was arrested by the BDR with firearms a few days before the last parliamentary elections in October and was freed on bail after the polls.

Kura Azam is a listed criminal and has several cases against him. Among others, Abbas chairman had 10 cases against him, Billal Talukder and Hasan Chowdhury have two cases against each of them, while Taiyab is a listed criminal with the Chittagong Metropolitan Police, police said.