Salehi is suspected of being one of the masterminds of the professor murder whose body was discovered in a septic tank behind his house on February 3 this year.

Sub-inspector of Detective Branch (DB) of police Ahsanul Kabir, also the investigation officer (IO) of the murder case, said, "We [police] have nothing to do if the court releases him [Salehi]. His arrest was necessary as he may have had some vital clues to the case."

Leaders of Jamaat-e-Islami and its student wing ICS yesterday said the High Court freed Rajshahi University ICS President Salehi on anticipatory bail.

Salehi had gone into hiding after three suspected killers of Taher in their statements said Salehi had suffocated Taher during the murder.

RU ICS Secretary Nur Mandal said, "Salehi is free and he is likely to visit the campus very soon for his master's exams."

Under pressure from Jamaat-Shibir, RU authorities recently allowed Salehi to take his master's examinations even though he failed to attend the required number of classes.

Salehi's involvement

The three arrested killers, Jahangir, Nazmul and Abdus Salam, in their confessional statements said RU teacher Mohiuddin and Salehi were involved in the murder.

Salam in his statement said, Salehi ensured Taher's death by suffocating him with a pillow over his face after Jahangir stabbed him. Nazmul, Salehi and Salam then dumped the body into a septic tank where he was found on February 3.

Jahangir in his statement said, Salehi and Mohiuddin persuaded him to commit the crime for over two months and offered him a computer and job at the university.

"I opted for shooting him to death but Salehi said that would make too much noise and Mohiuddin suggested suffocating him with the pillow," Jahangir said describing their planning before the murder.

The IO earlier told a Rajshahi court the police have evidence against Salehi which directly link him to the murder.

The police said, Salehi got involved in the plot to murder Taher to get Nazim a teaching job in the university and Salehi developed close relations with Mohiuddin through Nazim.