Nirmala Devi, the widow of Binod Kumar Ram, with a relative at Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College and Hospital in Bhagalpur. Picture by Amit Kumar

Bhagalpur, May 20: The murder of an LIC agent in daylight has spread panic among the residents of Naugachia sub-division of Bhagalpur district.

So pronounced is the terror of the so-called “influential people” of the area that even the wife of the deceased is scared to give away the details of the crime of which she and her daughters are the only witnesses. “They would kill my daughters and me because we are the only witnesses of the incident,” cried Nirmala Devi as she waited for the release of her husband’s body from the Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College and Hospital (JLNMCH).

LIC agent Binod Kumar Ram was shot by a group of youths on May 19.

He was brought to JLNMCH late last evening where doctors declared him dead on arrival. The body was sent for post-mortem in the morning.

Wails of Nirmala Devi and her daughters echoed through the hospital corridor but no villager came forward to assure them of protection or justice through legal means.

“We were coming from my parents’ house at Kataria (Katihar) on our motorbike last evening when the criminals blocked the way and forced us to stop. They overpowered my husband and dragged him towards the diara area. They started beating up my husband mercilessly and when I tried to prevent them, they fired at my husband. They also dragged me and my daughters — Parvati (8) and Snehalata (4) — and tried to kill us but I cried at their feet and begged them to leave us,” Nirmala narrated before the police.

She alleged that not a single person from the locality (dominated by the influential community members) came forward to help them when they were being attacked. The couple has five children, of which two were present at the spot of crime.

Nirmala named Laddu Choudhary, Ghutor Choudhary, Akhilesh Choudhary, Chotu Choudhary (all residents of Amarpur) and three to four unidentified persons in the FIR lodged in connection with the murder.

She told the police that last year, a nephew of Binod Kumar was kidnapped by some goons and rescued after one month. A case against the suspected abductors was lodged with Bihpur police station and Binod was the informant in the complaint. The name of the same youths figured in the FIR lodged by Nirmala today.

“The youths had several times threatened my husband to withdraw the case against them from the Naugachia court,” she said.

B.P. Mandal officer-in-charge of Bihpur police station said: “According to the claim of the widow of the victim, there was an old enmity between her husband and the youths named in the FIR. We have started verifying the facts.” Police sources at Naugachia suspected the immediate reason behind the killing of the LIC agent was the defeat of a woman candidate from the village contesting for the post of mukhiya.

The son of the candidate, Akhilesh Choudhary, had threatened to take revenge on the backward community members of the area for his mother’s defeat. Tension reportedly has spread in the region after the murder of Binod.

Dhiraj Kumar, superintendent of police, Naugachia, said the police have launched a massive manhunt to nab the accused named in the crime. He told the media that the situation in Bihpur is under control but refused to comment on any caste tension prevailing in the area. Bihpur villagers, meanwhile, narrate a different story. “Caste tension has been brewing between members of the influential caste and the backward community for long. In 2009, members of the backward community lynched a criminal, Fantush Choudhary, who was demanding rangdari (extortion) from them,” a source said.

The villagers pointed out that all the criminals involved in the murder of Binod were close associates of Fantush and had earlier threatened them to leave the village.

“Akhilesh earlier had blamed us for not helping his mother win the panchayat polls and had threatened us with dire consequences,” a villager said. “They are very influential people here and they enjoy full support from other members from their community. Please don’t mention our names or we will land in trouble,” the villager added.Members of the “influential community”, however, denied their involvement in the murder.

“Because of some particular persons, the entire community cannot be blamed. There should be a proper investigation into the incident,” one villager said on condition of anonymity.