Dhaka: The murder of the Italian aid worker Cesare Tavella was planned and directed by BNP leader Abdul Qayum, who was also a former ward commissioner of Badda, home minister Asaduzzaman Khan said on Tuesday.

The minister made the remark while talking over phone with private television channel Ekattor (71) at a late night programme in Dhaka.

The home minister’s remark came following the arrest of 4 suspects over the killings of two foreigners in Dhaka.

The arrested persons earlier revealed that one unnamed person, who they called as ‘big brother’, had ordered the killing of Tavella, said Dhaka Metropolitan Police on Monday.

Referring to a report of the Bangla Daily Jugantar, Asaduzzaman said, ‘Those big brothers who are being talked about have been named in Jugantar report today.’

According to the said Daily Jugantar report, BNP leader Abdul Qayum was behind Tavella murder, while another BNP leader Habibunnabi Sohel was implicated in the murder of the Japanese citizen Hoshe Kunio.

Later the home minister told NTV Online that Qayum is being suspected to be linked with the Italian citizen murder.

Earlier on Tuesday Asaduzzaman Khan at a press conference at the Secretariat hinted that the authorities had managed to figure out the masterminds behind these two foreigners’ killings, and those persons had political links.