Tension in Begusarai over murder of panchayat functionary

BEGUSARAI: Tension has gripped Manjhaul subdivisional market following the murder of Cheriya-Bariarpur ''up-pramukh'' Manoj Sahni, 30, in the crowded market on Saturday evening.
According to last reports reaching the district headquarter, the aggrieved villagers and supporters of the deceased ‘up-pramukh'' have not allowed the administration to lift the body for post-mortem.
They have also blocked the Begusarai-Rosera road. The reports said that the agitating villagers have demanded arrest of the culprits prior to the lifting of the body.
According to sources, about half-a-dozen armed miscreants, at about 7 pm on Saturday, sprayed bullets on Manoj while he was sitting in a telephone booth situated in the market in front of the martyr Major Mukesh memorial house.
According to local people, political rivalry is the reason behind the murder. No arrest has been made in this regard till the last reports came in.
However, according to sources, a case has been lodged with the Manjhaul police outpost under the Cheriya-Bariarpur police station.
Condemning the murder, ministers Rama Devi and Shri Narayan Yadav, local MLA Bhola Singh, district board chief Ratan Singh, participating in a cleanliness rally organised here at Gandhi Stadium on Sunday, expressed grave concern over the recent rising incidents of crime in Begusarai district.
No senior official of the district could be contacted for the official version.