A group of men who were dressed as 'kanwariyas' shot dead a dreaded gangster near a temple in Jharkhand's Dumka district on Friday morning. According to the police, the slain gangster -- identified as Amarnath Singh -- was wanted in at least 30 criminal cases.
The police said Singh was shot at point-blank range by the gunmen while he and his family were making an offering at the Basukinath temple in Dumka during the holy month of "Shravan."
Six empty cartridges found at the spot
The incident happened near Nandi Chowk. Dumka's Superintendent of Police (SP) Amber Lakra said at least six empty cartridges were found at the spot and the post-mortem would reveal the exact number of bullets he received.
Around 30-40 criminal cases were pending against Singh, most of which were registered in Jamshedpur, the SP said. He added that the gunmen are yet to be identified. They took advantage of the ongoing 'Shravan Mela' and executed their plan by dressing up like 'kanwariyas', Lakra said.
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It should be noted here that millions of devotees, known as 'kanwariyas', undertake the 'Kanwar Yatra' every year during the month of 'Shravan' to fetch holy water from the Ganga and carry them on their shoulders for kilometres to offer it to Shiva temples. The 'kanwariyas' usually dress in saffron outfits.
(With PTI inputs)
