A contractor was shot dead on Tuesday in the old part of the city, sending a chill down the spine of residents barely two days after a new government was sworn in.

The victim, Subhash Chandravanshi (57), had gone to the Ghagha Toli locality in east Patna to oversee the construction work of a house when criminals fired three shots at him, killing him instantly.

The father of three was the lone bread-earner of his family.

The incident came on a day chief minister Nitish Kumar had a long meeting with administrative officials and police officers to discuss the law and order situation in the state. Nitish, after taking the oath of office on Sunday, had said improving the law and order was one of his priorities.

"The area where the incident took place mostly has houses of businessmen. The police had talks with the residents but no one could give any information. The deceased was a simple man from a humble background. He used to reside in the Gurhatta area, which is around 1km from the crime spot. We do not have any clue about the number of attackers or whether they arrived on foot or any vehicle. The man was shot thrice from close range. Two bullets hit him on the head and one in the neck, causing instant death," said an officer at the Khajekalan police station.

Subhash had started from home on foot around 7.30am towards the locality and people had seen him sipping tea with two other men.

"There could be an extortion angle but it cannot be confirmed yet. Some residents saw him at the tea stall after which he walked towards Ghagha Toli. There is an under-construction house of which he's the contractor. He had gone to check whether or not the labourers had come to work. The residents then heard gunshots. However, none of them saw any attacker. The police have recovered three empty cartridges from the spot," said the officer.

Patna superintendent of police (SP) (east) Sudhir Porika, who went to the spot to investigate, was not in a position to say anything.

"His wife, Poonam Devi, and two daughters are in shock and unable to speak. The couple have a 10-year-old son but he is a special child. The family lived in Subhash's paternal house along with his brother Subodh's family. He, too, is not in a condition to speak. The police would be in a position to say anything once the family talks," said the SP.

The law and order situation has become a matter of concern considering that over the past month, the city has witnessed several crimes with police having failed to crack the cases.

On February 12, a jeweller, identified as Santosh, was shot dead in the Mainpura locality of Raja Bazaar.

On February 9, two men robbed a trader at gunpoint at his shop in Dujra locality.

On January 23, a five-year-old girl was brutally murdered in AG Colony under Shastrinagar police station area.

On December 13, middle-aged Amritesh Kumar was shot dead near Budh Marg under Kotwali police station area. In most of these incidents, there has been no breakthrough.