Chatra police have taken a suspect in custody for questioning in the murder case of Indradev Yadav, a reporter with a Hindi news channel, expecting to find some substantial clues to work with.
Unidentified criminals pumped five bullets in Indradev’s chest close to Devaria Panchayat secretariat near Chatra Bypass when he was returning home from work on Thursday night. He is survived by his wife and three children.
Arriving at the crime scene, which falls under the jurisdiction of Chatra Sadar police station, policemen found bullet casings, a knife and Indradev’s motorcycle. This point is barely one kilometre away from district police headquarters and 500 meters away from Central Reserve Police Force camp.
“There were no eyewitnesses of the shootout who can divulge information about the incident or the number of assailants involved. We have not found signs pointing towards the direction the shooters fled to after gunning down Indradev,” stated Chatra Superintendent of Police Anjani Kumar Jha.
As intimated by sources, the youth taken in custody for interrogation is a MlA representative with alleged ties to extremist outfit Tritiya Prastuti Committee. However, nothing about his identity was disclosed by police sources.
“Although we do not suspect his direct involvement in the murder, we are confident that he will be able to furnish some useful information regarding the case. We are working on two to three probable motives behind the killing, but the finer details can be uncovered only after thorough investigation,” Jha said.
Attack on the fourth pillar of democracy incited criticism from political factions too. Rashtriya Janata Dal leader lalu Prasad Yadav paid a visit to the family of the murdered scribe on Friday morning, primarily to console them and then to launch verbal blitzkrieg against the BJP-led Jharkhand Government.
The former Bihar Chief Minister took the detour to Chatra while on his way to address political rallies in nearby Panki ahead of Assembly bye polls scheduled in these constituencies on May 16. He demanded jobs on compensatory grounds and ex gratia payment for Indradev’s dependents.
“This is to be expected from Bharatiya Janata Party. Murders are rampant in Jharkhand while the government remains a bystander. Deputy Collector and SP didn’t even turn up after a journalist is killed,” lalu was heard saying after seeing Indradev’s mortal remains at Chatra Sadar Hospital.
He further asserted that he will be meeting Jharkhand’s Chief Minister and Director General of Police with demands of bringing the criminals behind the killing to justice without further ado.
Shortly after, CM Raghubar Das broke his silence over the matter. Meant for DGP DK Pandey, the CM issued orders to hasten the investigation for apprehending the culprits soon. No matter who the murderers are, they will not be spared, Das mentioned in his statement over the murder.
Meanwhile, members of Jharkhand journalists’ fraternity are up in arms following the brutal murder. Journalists from Ranchi staged a demonstration near Albert Ekka Chowk of State capital, raising slogans against the State police and government along with demands of arresting the criminals without delay.
Journalists from other districts also expressed their anger over the murder. Chatra-Gaya, Chatra-Ranchi and Chatra-Hazaribagh highways have been blocked by protestors over the incident, resulting in motionless queues of vehicles measuring in several kilometres. Shops remained closed in Chatra with support from city’s business class.
Assuring swift action in the case, ADG (Operations) SN Pradhan said in a message, “Jharkhand Police assures all journalists and media personnel that no stone will be left unturned in solving the murder case of Indradev Yadav. We condemn this incident and stand with you in these difficult times. Instructions have been given to Chatra police to quickly find the culprits. This will be true homage to the deceased on behalf of police force.”