Patna, May 29: Speculation is rife over the revamp of the district police set-up after the Election Commission announced the Purnea Town Assembly seat bypoll would be conducted on June 25.

The seat became vacant following the murder of BJP MLA Rajkishore Keshari by Rupam Pathak, principal of a Purnea-based public school, at his Sipahi Tola residence in Purnea on January 4 this year. The political circles are agog with discussions over Rupam contesting the polls as an Independent candidate. If she decides to throw her hat into the poll ring, a recast in the Purnea district police force looks imminent.

The Purnea district police officers have been in the eye of the storm because of their alleged partisan role in the investigation into two important cases involving Rupam and Keshari. “How can the same set of police officers be entrusted with the task of conducting free, fair and peaceful elections when their role in the investigation into alleged sexual exploitation of Rupam raised many eyebrows,” Ganga Prasad, a resident of Purnea’s Gulab Bagh locality, said.

The residents of the area said barring the superintendent of police (SP) Nayyar Hasnain Khan, all the police officers — right from the station house officer (SHO) of Khajanchi Haat police station under whose jurisdiction the houses of the slain MLA Keshari and the prime accused Rupam are, to the deputy inspector-general — had not been shifted from Purnea after the incident.

Khan was transferred after his promotion to the rank of DIG. He is at present posted as DIG, Darbhanga range.

Additional chief electoral officer (Bihar) Kumar Anshumali said it was too early to comment on the transfer of any official. “Instructions will be issued as per the prescribed rules,” he added.

The case related to the murder of the MLA was handed over to the CBI because of mounting pressure on the state government from people across the party lines. The case related to alleged sexual exploitation of Rupam by the slain MLA and his associates is pending in the Purnea court.

The country’s premier investigating agency has submitted chargesheet against Rupam in the court of the special judicial magistrate, CBI, in Patna. She has been booked under Section 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) by the CBI instead of Section 302 (murder) of the Indian Penal Code. The Khajanchi Haat police had lodged an FIR against Rupam under Section 302 of the IPC.