A reported move by an influential BNP leader to get his favoured candidate elected as the Raozan municipality chairman sparked off the sense of foreboding, highly placed sources said.

They said, as the ruling party stalwart, the godfather of top terror Jan-e-Alam killed last Thursday, appears to be dead set on having his man elected, Rab plans to deploy troops across the upazila to thwart any attack by terrors on the run.

A local BNP leader said on condition of anonymity, "The deaths of Jan-e-Alam and his cohorts have broken his mentor's heart and significantly diminished his sway over the locality. That man is now desperate and would go to any lengths to get the municipality's chair."

"Raozan has really been spared a bloodbath over this municipal polls with the deaths of Jan-e-Alam and his gang, as he [Alam] was a commissioner candidate for Ward-9," he added.

Rab officials said they would continue their hunt to nab other listed criminals of Chittagong including Raozan and Fatikchhari.

Rab has already stepped up its surveillance in south Raozan to track down another top criminal, Azimuddin Mahmud, who was convicted in the sensational Srikantha Raxit Murder Case and sentenced to death, Rab officials said. They believe Azimuddin might be hiding in this area.

Gittu Nasir, Habib Khan, Sajjad, Selim alias BDR Selim, Fazal Huq, Bidhan Barua, Dulu, Babar, Sunil, Morshed Khan and Alam alias Etim Alam are among the criminals on the Rab's wanted list.

Meanwhile, sources said some of the top listed criminals including Shibir Nasir, Azizya, Azrail Delwar, Bhagina Ramjan and Jamai Faruk, now in jail, are avoiding submission of bail prayers, as they are too scared of Rab to come out of the safety of jail custody.