8 cases of attack on cops in a year

Patna: Khaki does not evoke fear in Bihar. Or so it seems if one goes by the fact that two police officers were killed during the last ten days and the cases of attack on policemen during the last one year in the state number eight.

In at least five of these cases, the service revolvers of the policemen were looted by the assailants. Worse, the weapons are yet to be recovered.

Qayamuddin Ansari, SHO of Kothi police station in Gaya district, was shot during his morning walk on Monday. Only a week back on September 24, ASI Ram Raj Chaudhary, posted in the Telhara police station in Nalanda district, was gunned down at Fatuha in Patna district.

On October 8 last year, criminals opened fire at a probationer IPS officer of the 2014 batch on Buddha Marg in Patna. Then posted as ASP in Phulwarisharif, Rakesh Kumar was hit by three bullets -- one in hand and one in back while the third grazed past his earlobe. His bodyguard, Suresh Das, sustained a bullet injury in abdomen.

"The trend is definitely worrying, but prima facie these are criminal activities. Gaya, especially Kothi police station area, is a Maoist-hit district," Patna police zone IG N H Khan said and added police would probe the cases from all angles, including suspected involvement of Maoists or their splinter groups.

Patna SSP Manu Maharaaj, who heads the SIT probing the case of murder of ASI Chaudhary, has been asked by the IG to coordinate with the SIT headed by Gaya SP (city), which has been formed to probe the case of murder of SHO Ansari.

"Raids are on... We cannot rule out the possibility of the involvement of the same group in the attacks on the men in uniform," the IG said.

On April 18, two criminals shot SI Suresh Thakur and snatched his service revolver in broad daylight at Gorakshini under the Barh police station area in Patna district. The SI was posted in Maranchi police station of Patna. On March 16, two armed criminals attacked Bhuvaneshwar Prasad, a retired SI, at Bhind in Nalanda district. He, however, survived the attack.

Early this year on January 8, bullet-riddled body of ASI Ashok Yadav was found near Hajipur in Vasihali district. On January 30, suspected Maoists killed SI Bhavesh Kumar of Dharahara police station during an encounter in Lathiya Kol forests in Lakhisarai district.