After Rajdev Ranjan, who was allegedly shot dead by sharp shooters of dreaded gangster-cum-politician Shahabuddin, another journalist has been killed in Bihar’s Sasaram on Saturday.
According to sources, involvement of stone mining mafia is suspected as deceased scribe Dharmender Singh had been writing against them for a long. Singh, a correspondent of Hindi daily Dainik Bhaskar, was shot dead outside a roadside tea shop in Sasaram.
The victim’s family has alleged that he was being threatened by the stone mining mafia for a long to not write against them.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) along with its allies Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) and Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) has condemned the incident and blamed Chief Minister Nitish Kumar-led state government for the deteriorating law and order situation in Bihar.
In May, Rajdeo Ranjan, a senior journalist of Hindi daily Hindustan, was shot dead by unidentified assailants in Siwan district. The Central Bureau of Investigation is still probing the case.
Condemning killing of a journalist in Rohtas district, BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi, on Saturday, blamed the “rise in crime” in Bihar for a fourth journalist being murdered in the state in past one year.
Terming as “laughable” Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s claim of “slide in crime rates” since liquor ban, he asked how come the cases of kidnapping witnessed a rise of 200 per cent in August as compared to April this year when prohibition came into force.
“Likewise there is increase of 79 per cent in incidents of rape, 92 per cent in road dacoities, riot and theft by 26 per cent each and 19 per cent in murder during the period,” Modi pointed out.
“Do murders of journalists Ajay Vidrohi in Sitamarhi, Mahendra Pandey in Gaya, Rajdeo Ranjan in Siwan and now Dharmendra Singh in Rohtas not put a question mark on claim of ‘rule of law’ in the state?” he said in a statement.
Reacting to the killing 35-year-old scribe Dharmendra Singh, he said, “It’s a result of rise in crime that there was a murder of fourth journalist in Bihar in past one year.”
Singh, who worked with a prominent vernacular daily, was having tea at a road side stall at Amratola village under mufassil police station of Rohtas when assailants pumped bullet in his stomach from point blank range resulting in his death around 6 am on Saturday.
Modi has demanded immediate arrest of killers of Rohtas scribe, their speedy trial and a sum of Rs 25 lakh be extended to victim’s dependents.