A senior Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) leader and Raghopur muscleman was shot dead and two of his family members grievously injured after some unidentified assailants sprayed over two dozen bullets at them at Kachi Dargah near Patna on Friday afternoon.

The police did not rule out the involvement of contract mafia behind the killing and suspect the involvement of a local rival gang.

The incident took place around 3 pm when LJP leader Brijnathi Singh (56), a Rajput leader, was attacked by some motorcycle-borne assailants who reportedly used an AK-47 rifle in the attack. Singh was travelling from Raghopur in Vaishali district to Patna and had taken Pipapul instead of Mahatma Gandhi Setu to reach the state capital. Singh’s nephew and sister-in-law (brother’s wife), who were accompanying him, were also injured in the attack. Singh died on way to the hospital.

This is the third daylight killing in and around the state capital in the past one month. Following the attack, local residents protested and blocked traffic for two hours.

Bihar additional director general of police (headquarters) Sunil Kumar said, “Prima facie investigation suggests the involvement of one Munna Singh of Vaishali. It is an organised gang.”

A senior police officer from Vaishali said the LJP leader enjoyed a huge clout in Raghopur and would get cuts in most contracts awarded in the area. Sources said the reason for narrowing it down to the Munna Singh gang could be because of an alleged sparring with the LJP leader following a flurry of contracts after the start of the 9.7 km Ganga bridge linking Kachchi Dargah with Raghopur.

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