Bihar: Two killed in Khagaria over panchayat polls rivalry

PATNA: Two persons were shot dead in group rivalry over the panchayat election at Rohiyama village under Beldaur police station area in Khagaria district late Sunday night. The deceased were identified as Kishundev Choudhary (50) and Haribol Yadav (60), a retired home guard jawan.
The incident sparked tension in the village as both the groups were not in a mood to relent. Sensing the gravity of the situation, Khagaria SP Amitesh Kumar has deployed additional armed forces there.
Sulekha Devi(45), the wife of Kishundev, told the police on Monday that her husband was trying to mobilise support in his favour for the post of panchayat samiti member in the upcoming election, to be held in the panchayat on October 24. “Around 12 on Sunday night, some people came to my residence and requested my husband to come for the meeting of the panchayat. My husband left for the venue to attend the meeting where he was shot dead,” she said.
On the other hand, Haribol’s kin claimed that he was attacked by the rival group led by Kishundev to settle his political score ahead of the panchayaty polls.
The SP said the reason behind the incident is yet to be ascertained. However, preliminary investigation suggested that old rivalry could be the reason behind the incident. The police have detained half a dozen suspects for interrogation.
Beldaur police station SHO Santosh Kumar said Kishundev was killed on the spot while Haribol succumbed to the gunshot injuries on the way to the Sadar hospital. The bodies were sent to the SKMCH for postmortem.
Meanwhile, patrolling in and around the village has been intensified in the wake of tension. The police officials, however, described the situation as tense but under control.