Police believe a distant relative of Dr Rajnish Ranjan may have had a hand in his murder or the conspiracy behind it.

It has been a week since the doctor was gunned down by an unidentified person/s near his Rajendra Nagar residence under the jurisdiction of Kadamkuan police station.

The men-in-uniform, who had earlier said Ranjan had been killed for personal reasons, on Friday, said the murderer or the conspirator was a relative.

However, none of the senior police officers agreed to come on record stating that investigations were on.

The medical fraternity, perturbed by the police’s alleged laxity, is gearing up to hit the streets and launch a series of protests after December 15.

“At present, investigations are on and the details cannot be divulged. But we have a strong suspicion that a distant relative of the doctor might have been a key player in the murder. The relative can be the killer or the conspirator. Nothing more can be said. We are close to cracking the case,” a police officer said.

Earlier, the police had categorically said Ranjan had been murdered for personal reasons, ruling out loot or extortion bids.

“It is a complex case and the police are trying to find out more about the deceased’s personal relationships. His wife, also a doctor, cannot stand or walk owing to some ailment. Many people had asked the man to re-marry but he had refused to do so. But there was some problem in the family but his wife had nothing to do with it. Investigations are continuing on and we do hope that the case will be solved soon,” another police officer said.

The incident occurred on November 30, when the 43-year-old was walking back to his home at Ramkundan Apartments after buying some articles from a nearby shop.

A bullet of .315 bore hit him from behind near Durga temple, causing injuries. He was rushed to a local nursing home but the doctors declared him brought dead.

Meanwhile, the state chapter of the Indian Medical Association (IMA) said they were losing patience.

“Right now, we are very much perturbed. First, the police assured us the case would be solved fast but now things have slowed down. We are in touch with the cops but not getting any concrete answer. We have a meeting lined up on December 15. If by then, the police are unable to crack the case, the doctors will hit the streets and silent protests would be organised,” Rajiv Ranjan Prasad, the president of the state chapter of IMA, told The Telegraph.

The state chapter of the IMA has already demanded a compensation of Rs 1 crore for Ranjan’s family.

On Tuesday, the police claimed that they had detained three people and the trio had been interrogated.