Patna (Bihar): Here’s a crime round up in a state where the Chief Minister is more interested in  having cops ’round up’ people suspected of having the ‘forbidden swig of liquor’! At least six daring murders in the past 24 hours were reported from across Bihar, where the police are preoccupied with devising newer measures and deploying more forces everyday in ensuring that no one drinks alcohol, reports a local daily.

Veermani Kumar, 35, a junior engineer with the irrigation department, was shot dead on Monday night when he was returning to his Patna home from his office at Hajipur, the district headquarters of Vaishali.

The assailants intercepted Veermani’s car near Mehru bridge between Shiv Vachan Chowk and Marichhiya Devi Chowk on National Highway-19 in Saran district, around 13km north of Patna, and fired at him from close range.

The bullet pierced the windowpanes of the vehicle and hit Veermani’s chest. He died on the driving seat. Veermani  was travelling alone in the car and was supposed to reach his residence at Kurji in Patna within half an hour.

On getting information, a police team attached to Sonepur police station reached the spot and took out the engineer from the car after breaking open the windowpanes and admitted him to a local hospital.

The doctor declared him “brought dead”.

Saran superintendent of police (SP) Hari Kishore Rai said the motive of the assailants was yet to be ascertained. Though the family members denied any personal enmity, sources said a land dispute was suspected.

A police officer associated with the investigation said a case related to property dispute was pending against Veermani in Patna.

“It would not be prudent to disclose the identity of the suspect at this stage as investigation is under way,” the police officer said.

The SP said the junior engineer used to return to Patna daily from Hajipur after finishing his work in office.

The police didn’t rule out involvement of hired goons. “The manner in which the engineer was attacked showed the assailants were familiar to him,” he said.

In Begurasai, two young sons of a mukhiya were kidnapped on Monday night and murdered.

The police recovered the brothers’ bodies from two different places under the jurisdiction of Teghra and Khodbandpur police stations of the district.

The dead were identified as Jitendra Kumar and Ramlal Mahto, both sons of Sitaram Mahto, the mukhiya of Rasalpur panchayat in Begusarai district, around 110km east of Patna.

The police have failed to make any breakthrough in the case so far.

Jehanabad saw the murder of two members of a family in which three others were injured.

Police said a group of heavily armed persons barged into house of Birendra Yadav at Mishra Bigha village on Monday night and held five persons captive.

Two of the hostages, identified as Birendra Yadav and Raju Yadav, died during treatment. Three others who were seriously injured in the attack were undergoing treatment at the Patna Medical College and Hospital.

Land dispute is suspected to be the motive.

An FIR has been lodged against a man called Lali Yadav and his associates in connection with the incident.

The murders sparked tension in the village, forcing the district administration to deploy security forces to avert an untoward incident.

In Sitmarhi on Tuesday, unidentified criminals killed Satya Narain Mahto, a panchayat sevak.

Mahto, in-charge of several panchayats under Bela block in Sitamarhi district, was attacked when he was on his way from Musaharnia village to the block headquarters on his motorbike.

“It seems there is no fear of law among criminals,” an RJD leader said. “They are striking at will, anytime and anywhere.”

On Monday, two persons were lynched in Khagaria. Also on Monday, a jail warder was shot dead at Hajipur in Vaishali district and criminals attempted to loot a cash van in Saran district.

  Bihar, crime