Patna: BJP MP from Bihar’s Araria, Pradeep Kumar Singh has received extortion and death threats on his mobile phone from Nepal, prompting him to lodge a formal police complaint on Wednesday.
In his complaint to the police, Singh said that he received messages on his mobile phones asking to pay a hefty sum as extortion, failing which he would be eliminated. The extortionist from Nepal sent messages after the MP didn’t pay heed to repeated calls.
The complaint has been submitted to the Araria police, the MP said, “The first call was made on my mobile phone on August 27, but I didn’t respond to the caller. Then he sent a message asking me to ensure the release of Dinesh Rathore, a gangster lodged in Araria jail.”
Subsequently, the extortionist asked the BJP leader to cough up Rs.10 lakh as extortion. The MP in his police complaint said that he didn’t take notice of such messages, but repeated messages made him panicky, and he sought police intervention.
The extortionist, who introduced himself as Binod Rathore, said, “This is my last warning. Ensure the early release of my brother Dinesh Rathore, who is currently lodged in jail and pay Rs.10 lakh as extortion money to my brother at the jail gate. If you fail to do so, you will be killed with bombs, bullets and grenades anywhere in Araria.”
The MP, however, claimed that he had been targeted by Dinesh Rathore and his henchmen on several occasions in the past. “I think the district police will seek assistance of their counterparts in Nepal to arrest the accused. Most dreaded criminals from Bihar take shelter in Nepal,” he added.
A senior police officer said that the criminals escape to Nepal after committing crimes in Indian territory as Nepal is a separate country and state police had to seek the help of federal security agency to arrest such criminals. “But action will be taken against the accused,” he claimed.
Araria superintendent of police Amit Ranjan said that the police have received a complaint from the MP and further action is underway.