BJP worker Ramashray Singh shot dead near home in Patori village over suspected political enmity.
Police station head removed for negligence after victim had reported threats.
BJP demands CBI probe, stages protests; incident exposes security concerns for party workers in Bihar.
A local Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) member was shot dead in broad daylight in Bihar's Samastipur district, prompting the immediate suspension of the local Station House Officer (SHO) over alleged negligence in providing security. The victim, identified as 45-year-old Ramashray Singh, a former mukhiya and active BJP worker from Patori block, was attacked by unidentified gunmen near his residence in Bishunpur village around 11:30 am.
According to police, Singh was returning from a market when two assailants on a motorcycle opened fire at him from close range, hitting him multiple times in the chest and head. He was rushed to a nearby primary health centre but succumbed to his injuries en route to a hospital in Samastipur town. No arrests have been made yet, but initial investigations suggest a possible link to local political rivalry or land disputes, as Singh had been involved in several village-level conflicts.
Bihar Director General of Police R.S. Bhatti ordered the suspension of Patori SHO Sanjay Kumar for "dereliction of duty," citing failure to act on prior threats received by Singh. The BJP leader had reportedly complained to police about receiving death threats from rivals but was not provided adequate protection. An SIT has been formed under the supervision of Samastipur SP to probe the case, with teams scanning CCTV footage and questioning locals.
The killing has sparked protests by BJP workers in Samastipur, who blocked roads demanding justice and accused the Nitish Kumar-led NDA government of failing to safeguard party cadres. State BJP president Dilip Jaiswal condemned the murder as a "targeted political assassination" and demanded a CBI inquiry, stating: “This is not just an attack on an individual but on democracy. The government must explain why our workers are unsafe.”
The incident highlights the volatile law-and-order situation in Bihar ahead of upcoming panchayat elections, where local rivalries often turn deadly. Samastipur has seen several such political killings in recent years, often linked to caste equations and control over local resources.
