Bihar: Assailants shoot Katihar mayor dead near his residence

PATNA: Unidentified armed criminals shot dead Katihar town mayor Shivraj Paswan (38) near his residence at Santoshi chowk under town police station of Katihar on Thursday night.
The killing took place somewhere between 9.30pm to 9.45pm.
Police sources said that the mayor was returning home after attending a meeting somewhere when criminals shot him dead.
Police said that the mayor’s bike was recovered from the spot.
They said Paswan’s residence was near the spot and perhaps the assailants were trailing him after receiving specific information about his movement.
Panic gripped the Katihar police and district administration authorities after the mayor’s murder with ripples reaching up to the state capital.
The mayor’s murder is one of the biggest high-profile murders during the NDA government rule in Bihar.
Soon after the incident, orders were issued to seal the borders of Katihar district with rigorous vehicle checking and intensive raids were taken up by police.
Sadar SDPO Amarkant Jha said that the mayor was shot thrice from a very close range soon after he reached near the chowk.
“No one is ready to say anything at present. We are conducting raids. It's yet not clear how many shooters had reached the spot to kill him. The spot is just near his residence,” he said.
SDPO said that the mayor was rushed to Katihar Medical College and Hospital but was declared dead by doctors.
Paswan had become mayor hardly nine months back after the earlier mayor became an MLA in last year's assembly election, said Town circle inspector Ranjan Kumar Singh.
Sources said that three criminals had reached the spot on a bike and fled after opening fire on the mayor from close range.
Huge number of Paswan’s supporters thronged the spot as well as at the hospital later soon after coming to know about his assassination.