The spot on Amarnath Road where Kapil Deo Prasad Singh was shot dead on Wednesday. Picture by Ranjeet Kumar Dey

Patna, May 25: The capital again witnessed bloodshed in daylight today when a 48-year-old man was shot dead by two criminals at the Amarnath Road area behind the state BJP office at 8.30am.

The murder in a high-security zone housing the offices of political parties like JD (U), RJD, the Left parties and the BJP exposed security chinks in the city.

The deceased has been identified as Kapil Deo Prasad Singh, a resident of Garha village of Begusarai district. He was a small-time businessman and a farmer by profession.

Singh was walking on a footpath when two persons on a motorbike stopped close to him. Before Singh could understand their motive, one of the men got down from the bike and fired two shots at him from a close range.

Both the bullets hit Singh in the head, killing him on the spot. The assailants sped away on their bike. There were very few people on the road to raise an alarm.

The residents of the area informed police about the incident and rushed Singh to Patna Medical College and Hospital. He was declared brought dead by the doctors.

Kotwali police station officers are investigating the case. They said no arrests had been made yet. Investigations were on, they added.

“The victim was in Patna for the past three-four days for some land deal. The murder can be a result of the land deal gone wrong. At present, we cannot say anything. The family members of the deceased have been informed and his body has been sent for post-mortem. The case is being looked into from all possible angles and the police will also talk to the family of the deceased,” an officer of the Kotwali police station said.

The incident, the third of its kind this month, has shocked people. They feel the terror of daylight shootouts was back again.

“It is such a shocking incident. It becomes even more terrifying when one considers that the area is a high-security zone. The incident shows the real face of police alertness,” a resident of the area said.

The police said tracking such cases was very difficult.

“How can police know if a person has an issue with someone else? In all the recent murder cases, personal enmity or sour land deal or business rivalry were the cause of the crime. The police can only investigate the cases in a proper way and arrest the accused as soon as possible. Regular police patrolling has been strengthened,” an officer said.