DHAKA, Nov. 20 (Xinhua) -- Bangladesh announced a bounty of 2 million taka (19,428 U.S. dollars) for clues leading to the arrest of two death-row convicts who were whisked away from a court in capital Dhaka Sunday afternoon.

Bangladesh Police headquarters made the announcement in a mobile message, saying "a reward of 1 million taka each will be given to help arrest each of the death-row convicts who escaped from the court."

Bangladeshi Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan said border guards have been asked to remain vigilant so that the culprits cannot escape the country.

He said they also issued a red alert across the country to arrest the culprits. The convicts -- Moinul Hasan Shamim and Abu Siddique Sohel -- were members of an outlawed militant group -- Ansar Al Islam.

They were given the death penalty for their involvement in the killings of publisher Faysal Arefin Dipon and secular writer Avijit Roy. Roy was attacked with machetes as he left a book fair in the capital in February 2015.

Dipon was killed at his office in Dhaka in October 2015 for publishing books of a secular writer. Enditem

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