Friday 15 / November / 2024
Patna/New Delhi: Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Monday said he will ask for a Central Bureau of Investigation(CBI) probe into the journalist murder case in Siwan and rejected as "baseless" the criticism on law and order situation in the state.
"I am saddened and worried.... If there is an attack on a journalist, it's an attack on me and that's how I am looking at the case," Kumar told reporters here.
Rajdeo Ranjan, Siwan bureau chief of a Hindi daily, was shot dead in a market place in Siwan.
The journalist's family and opposition BJP have demanded a CBI inquiry into it.
"We have learnt that the victim's family wants a CBI inquiry. We are taking a decision to hand over the investigation to the CBI and it will be conveyed to the Centre," Kumar said.
Condemning the incident, he said, "We will request a speedy trial. No one will be spared."
Kumar said he had full faith in the state police which was conducting its probe in a free and fair manner but "circumstances have been created" where the family was in favour of a CBI inquiry.
Asked about Opposition BJP's allegation that 'jungle raj' had returned in Bihar, the chief minister said it was a "baseless" claim.
"There is no reason for it. People who campaigned using 'jungle raj' term were defeated and cannot reconcile themselves now. They see everything from that prism."
"Bihar has been ruled as per law and it will be ruled by law. No one should have any doubt," he said.
He also spoke of the "powerful liquor lobby", which was unhappy with imposition of prohibition in Bihar by him, and said they would "like to rake up such issues". Taking on the BJP, he said, "You look at it on case-to-case basis. Look at the Bihar government's response. You please compare our response to the response of BJP ruled states.
"But if you have already decided on a slant, I can't do anything. I can only work without bias."
"You look at the kind of atmosphere we have created in Bihar. But people will say what they have to say," Kumar said.
Meanwhile, Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan on Monday demanded imposition of President's Rule in Bihar, alleging that the law and order situation was "deteriorating" in the state, and favoured a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) inquiry in the Aditya Sachdeva murder case.
Hitting out at Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) Chief Lalu Prasad, Paswan alleged that the incidents of murder, rape and robbery have "crossed all records" since the Grand Alliance government came to power in the state six months ago.
"The way there has been a constitutional breakdown in the state, there is no other way than to impose President's Rule in Bihar which LJP has been demanding. The incidents of murder, rape, robbery etc will continue to take place unless President's Rule is imposed there," Paswan said.
He said a delegation of Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) met Home Minister Rajnath Singh and President Pranab Mukherjee last week and handed over a memorandum demanding President's Rule in Bihar.
"Political murders and lawlessness are common features in Bihar these days...It is the strong opinion of LJP that one leader or the other of ruling party is indulging in all these incidents and that is why the police cannot conduct a fair investigation," he said.
Demanding a CBI inquiry into the murder of a businessman's teenaged son in Gaya, Paswan alleged Bihar police is deliberately leaving several loopholes in the case.
"The police is deliberately not conducting a fair inquiry in the murder case of Aditya Sachdeva at Gaya so that the case against the accused may become weak," he claimed.
Listing the murder incidents in the state in the past six months, Paswan also demanded compensation of Rs 2.5 million and a government job to the families of each of the deceased.
"LJP is organising 'dharna' at every district headquarters in Bihar today against the maha-jungle raj," he said.
