TWO days before the last phase of Assembly elections in Bihar, three Dalits were killed and two others injured -allegedly by supporters of former JD-U MLA Krishnachandra Prasad Singh -over a land dispute at Pathua village in Lakhisarai district on Thursday morning.
The police said preliminary investigations do not point to any election angle. They said two people were killed in firing while a woman died of a heart attack. Two of the victims belong to the Extremely Backward Castes and one is a Scheduled Caste.
The incident took place around 7.30 a.m. when the three victims --Kusho Bhagat (55), Bachchan Rajak(45) and Pramila Devi (55) -and other villagers were resisting a bid by over 25 armed men, allegedly belonging to Singh, to destroy their standing mustard crop.
Villagers alleged the men opened fire, killing Kusho and Bachhan on the spot. They alleged Pramila Devi, who was badly beaten by rifle butts, died of a heart attack. Two other villagers, Rekha Devi and Nandu Bhagat, were seriously injured.
"It is a purely a war over land possession. Former MLA Singh is main accused along with 19 others. Preliminary investigations do not suggest any election angle," Bihar Additional Director of Police PK Thakur said.
Lakhisarai DSP Rajbansh Singh said they arrested Ramanuj Prasad Singh, a personal assistant of the former MLA.
Over 900 bighas of Bhoodan land given to farmers had been a bone of contention between EBC/SC and upper caste Bhumihars from adjoining Walipur village. The villagers had got patta (land ceiling certificate) for the land in 1983-84.
Former MLA Singh, who belongs to the village, is settled at Lakhisarai.
Village headman Mohan Bhagat said tension had been mounting for some time and alleged there had been several firing incidents in the past.
"The former MLA's musclemen again tried to make us concede our land. We resisted and three villagers paid with their lives," he alleged.
The MLA's supporters tried to give a political twist to the incident, alleging rebel JD-U Munger MP Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lalan Singh was trying to defame him. Lalan Singh had supported Congress nominee RS Singh in the November 1 election.
Source" The Finanacial Express Dt 19.11.2010
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