Heads roll over Sheikhpura killing

Four-year-old Saurav ran and hid under the bed when gunmen of a criminal gang struck last night, targetting the backward Chaurasia members in Manipur village in Sheikhpura district.

Four-year-old Saurav ran and hid under the bed when gunmen of a criminal gang struck last night, targetting the backward Chaurasia members in Manipur village in Sheikhpura district. The criminals dragged him out and shot him dead. Seven people were killed in the attack that lasted a few minutes — three children were among the dead.

Hours later, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar visited the village and removed the DM, DIG and SP. The new incumbents have been asked to crack down on the gangs operating in the area and nail the guilty. ‘‘This is the result of a gang war. It has nothing to do with caste. Those responsible for the killing will not be spared at any cost,’’ Nitish Kumar said.

The police have few leads so far. The criminal gang suspected is a backward caste gang; the victims were all from the backward caste. The killing comes as the Nitish Kumar government will complete six months in office, after promising to ‘‘institute the rule of law’’ within three months of assuming power.

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This is the second incident in less than a week in which backward caste members have been massacred. Nine backward caste members were killed in a similar attack on May 4. Last night, armed men raided the ‘‘Chaurasia’’ village in the night. ‘‘We were sitting on our terrace preparing to go to bed. When we saw them, we jumped and fled. The men escaped but the women and children were caught inside the house and gunned down,’’ said Ishwari Chaurasia who lost his wife, son and niece in the attack. The gang threatened that the Chaurasia families would be wiped out if they supported their rival gang. Villagers said a police jeep was standing outside the village but came in after two hours.

The state government was quick to admit that the killing was a failure of the police. Home Secretary Afzal Amanullah said the administration had failed to prevent the attack and replaced the DM, DIG and SP. The policeman in charge of Kasar police station was suspended on charges of ‘‘conniving’’ with the assailants and a departmental inquiry has been ordered. ‘‘The new DIG and SP have been directed to go all out against the criminals gangs and show results,’’ Home Secretary Afzal Amanullah said.

Ashok Mahto, a backward Kurmi caste criminal, has been held responsible for the killing. Yesterday’s attack is being seen as a revenge killing for four of his gang members who were shot dead by the rival Soni Mukhiya gang. The Chaurasia caste men were accused of acting as informers of the Soni gang. Both Ashok Mahto and Soni are of the same caste and were together until two years ago to tackle the upper caste gangs operating in the region. Then, they parted ways and Soni floated his own gang and shook hands with Akhilesh Singh who led the upper caste gang. Both Mahto and Mukhiya had put up candidates in the panchayat elections this time around.

Manipur is located near the border of Nawada and Sheikhpura districts and is a shelter for gangs while they dodge police. Villagers say the administration did not keep vigil after the May 4 killings. ‘‘The police picket in the village was removed despite the threat of retaliation by the Mahto gang,’’ says Ishwari Chaurasia.