March 17: A Rohtas police team is probing the role of an East Champaran resident in a series of events that led to folk singer Vikas Rai and his family to commit suicide at their rented Dehri-on-Sone house on March 13.

A source said earlier on March 8, the accused, Kalam, a resident of Sariswa in Raxaul town, around 200km north of Patna, had allegedly confined the singer's father, Santosh Kumar Singh, and other relatives, in his house and humiliated them. Vikas's family had gone to Raxaul to attend the wedding ceremony of a government official. Kalam released them only after Santosh promised to pay him Rs 10 lakh.

Kalam had accused Santosh of duping him of Rs 10 lakh while staying in Raxaul.

Sources close to the family said Vikas had bought two houses for his father at Bare Poreowa and Sunderpur. However, they sold their Bare Poreowa house to Kalam in November 2014. Kalam was peeved to know that the house had been mortgaged by a bank against the loan. Vikas and his father used to live at Raxaul before settling at Dehri-on-Sone in Rohtas. 'Financial constraints and humiliation led the singer's family members to commit suicide,' he said.

Raxual sub-divisional police officer J.N. Pandey feigned ignorance about any property belonging to Vikas's family at Raxaul. 'We have heard from some people that the Bhojpuri artiste had some assets here. But there is no official information about it,' he said, adding that the local police would cooperate with their counterparts in Rohtas in the investigation.

East Champaran superintendent of police (SP) Sunil Kumar confirmed the visit of a Rohtas police team to Raxaul. 'We are ready to extend our co-operation to the visiting team,' he said. He, however, denied the report that a local resident had been apprehended from Sariswa under the jurisdiction of Palanwa police station of the district.

Rohtas SP Shivdeep Lande said the case was being probed from all angles.

Additional reporting by R.N. Sinha from Motihari