Police in Bangladesh said they have arrested five men and busted an alleged plot by the Neo-JMB terror group to attack a prominent Sufi shrine in Sylhet city.

The suspects, identified as members of Neo-JMB, were also blamed for a blast in Dhaka's Paltan area on July 24, said officials of the Counter-Terrorism and Transnational Crimes unit at Dhaka Metropolitan Police.

"The arrested militants had planned to attack the shrine of Hazrat Shahjalal but we foiled it," Sylhet Metropolitan Police Commissioner Golam Kibria said.

Sylhet, in northeastern Bangladesh, is about 240 kms from Dhaka. Hundreds of devotees visit the holy shrine of Sufi saint Hazrat Shahjalal daily.

Police said the suspects were led by one Sheikh Naimuzzan along with Sayem Mirza, Rubel Mahmud, Abdur Rahim Jewel and Sanaul Islam. Two of them are university students.

Police said they have been on high alert since last month after receiving information on potential terror attacks at several high-profile locations including shrines, mosques and religious places.