Hajipur/Patna: Four days after two engineers were shot dead in broad daylight in Darbhanga, another engineer was today found murdered in Vaishali district of Bihar.
The body of Ankit Jha (42), with multiple injury marks, was spotted by locals in an orchard in Kashipur village within Rajapakar police station limits and police was informed. Superintendent of Police Rakesh Kumar said the victim was a quality engineer with Reliance IT. It was confirmed on the basis of a diary and identity card recovered from the pocket of the deceased.
The motive behind the murder of Jha, whose jurisdiction was entire north Bihar, was yet to be ascertained, the SP said.
The incident followed the gunning down of two engineers of a private road construction company by motorcycle-borne assailants on Saturday on Darbhanga-Kusheshwarsthan state highway in Darbhanga district, apparently after they defied the diktat of a criminal gang for protection money.
Brajesh Kumar and Mukesh Kumar, employed with road construction company M/S BSCCNC, were shot dead near Shivram Chowk when they were supervising laying of a road.
Meanwhile, RJD supremo Lalu Prasad, whose party is a coalition partner in the Nitish Kumar government, has said those who had challenged the law and order during his rule were at it again.
“Those who had challenged law and order during my rule are doing it all over again,” Lalu, facing accusations from the opposition of having brought back ‘Jungle Raj', told reporters in Patna.
Warning those responsible for the spurt in crime in Bihar of “serious consequences”, he urged the police brass to do everything to make the state crime-free. “It is our government in Bihar.
I appeal to the police to make Bihar crime-free by taking stringent action against criminals and anti-social elements who are out to bring disrepute to the state government,” he said.
He condemned the killing of engineers and asked the state government and their employers to take care of the kin of the deceased.
The RJD chief said the extortionists apparently wanted to send a message to other construction companies through these killings to make them cough up money.
On the murder case of the two engineers of a private construction company in Darbhanga district three days ago, the RJD supremo condemned the incident and asked the state government and the employers of slain engineers to provide all assistance to their kin.
Lalu said it appeared to be a plan to extort ransom from other construction companies carrying out projects in Bihar by sending them a message about their designs with the murder of the two engineers.
On the spurt in incidents of bank loot, he did not rule out the hand of insiders, namely bank officials and employees, but did not explain it any further.
It may be mentioned that opposition BJP has been targeting the state government by saying ‘jungle raj' had returned in Bihar, a reference to the presence of RJD in the Nitish Kumar government, due to spurt in crimes capped by murder of three engineers - two in Darbhanga and one in Vaishali - in the past four days.
Presiding over a review meeting of the home department yesterday, the Chief Minister too had chided the police brass for spurt in crimes and directed them to ensure rule of law in Bihar.
