PATNA: Unidentified armed criminals shot dead a lawyer in Bihar’s capital on Sunday, close on the heels of the killing of a BJP functionary in rural Patna.
The spate of killings in the recent past has created panic among residents, who expressed their deep concern over deteriorating law and order situation.
Police said that unidentified assailants fired at Jitendra Kumar when he was returning home after having a cup of tea at a tea stall, barely 300 metres from Sultanganj police station under Patna City sub-division.
Kumar was rushed to Patna Medical College and Hospital (PMCH), but he succumbed to his injuries.
Parichay Kumar, SP, Patna East, said that Jitendra was attacked by armed assailants while returning home after having tea. Police from the nearby Sultanganj police station reached the site after getting information about the incident.
The assailants had fled the scene before the arrival of the police. “We are collecting CCTV footage from the area to ascertain the identity of the criminals involved in the crime. The statement of some local residents and shopkeepers, who were eyewitnesses to the incident, is being recorded. A forensic team later visited the spot and collected samples,” SP, East, said.
Sub-divisional police officer (SDPO), Patna City, Atul Jha, along with other police officials, reached the site and started investigation.
“The reason behind the murder is yet to be ascertained. The statement of the deceased’s family members will be recorded later to ascertain the reason behind the murder,” he said.
The family members said that Jitendra had stopped practising law for the last two years. “He would visit the tea stall often, and it seems that the assailants were aware of his routine and attacked him while returning home after having tea,” a close relative of the deceased told this reporter.
The incident took place within 24 hours after the killing of a BJP functionary under Pipra police station limits in Rural Patna.
Surendra Kewat, 52, a resident of Sheikhpura village, was attacked by armed criminals while returning home from his farmland late on Saturday night.
He was rushed to AIIMS-Patna for treatment, but he succumbed to injuries.
R K Pal, Station House Officer (SHO) of Pipra police station, under whose jurisdiction the area comes, said that the assailants fired at Kewat from close range when he was returning home from his farmland on his motorbike.
“Motive of the assailants behind Kewat’s killing is yet to be ascertained,” he added.
On July 4, a prominent businessman Gopal Khemka was shot dead near his apartment on Exhibition Road under Gandhi Maidan police limits. He was attacked when he was waiting for the security guard to open the main entrance to enter the apartment premises. The police later arrested the mastermind and alleged shooter in the case.
The back-to-back murders in the state capital has caused much embarrassment to the leaders of the ruling dispensation and top police brass.
Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary said that murders due to personal enmity can’t be prevented. However, police have initiated action in all the cases. Earlier, Opposition leader Tejashwi Prasad Yadav slammed Chief Minister Nitish Kumar for his failure to check crime in the state. “Nobody is safe in Bihar these days,” he posted on X.