M A I N   N E W S

Bihar carnage: Special court to try killers 
11 held; 12 cops suspended

PATNA, June 18 (PTI, UNI) — The Bihar Government today announced setting up of a special court to try the perpetrators of the massacre of 35 persons in Mianpur even as 12 policemen were suspended and intensive raids were on to nab those responsible for Friday’s killing.

A red alert has been sounded in Aurangabad district, the scene of the massacre, and Jehanabad, Arwal and Nawada and additional companies of paramilitary forces deployed to assist in the intensive raids, including on the hideouts of the Ranvir Sena, responsible for the massacre, Director-General of Police K.A. Jacob said.

Eleven persons have so far been arrested in connection with the Mianpur killings.

RJD chief Laloo Prasad Yadav, while announcing setting up of the court, said a special task force would also be constituted to tackle Left and Right-wing extremism and identify criminal gangs.

All 12 policemen posted at Sahar police picket near Mianpur village, have been suspended for negligence of duty, Inspector-General of Police Neelmani said.

The picket has been closed down and a new one would be set up at Dulhabigha with adequate securitymen to deal with extremists and anti-social elements, he said.

Mr Neelmani, who is supervising the combing operation against the ultra organisations in central Bihar, said Aurangabad, Jehanabad and Arwal police were conducting joint raids at various places in which the CRPF and the state military police were also engaged.

Official sources said the state government would replace the Superintendent of Police of Aurangabad to tone up its administration.

A report from Aurangabad said tension was running high and the victims’ families were spending sleepless nights in fear.

The last rites of the deceased were performed in the village itself yesterday in the presence of senior civil and police officers.

Mr Neelmani said an additional company of the CRPF was deployed in Aurangabad to further step up the combing operation.

Meanwhile, a three-member fact-finding team of the BJP led by former Union Minister, M.A. Naqvi, visited the carnage site to make an on-the-spot study of the situation.

Later, Mr Naqvi said in Gaya the situation in Bihar had gone beyond control and the NDA government should take the initiative to end the misrule of the Laloo-Rabri regime and establish rule of law.

He said immediate steps were required to prevent recurrence of massacres in Bihar. Mr Naqvi said the Chief Minister had lost “moral right to continue in office even for a second.”

The BJP Rajya Sabha member, Mr S.S. Ahluwalia, who is also a member of the team, demanded immediate dismissal of the Rabri Devi ministry placing the state Assembly under suspended animation.

RJD president Laloo Prasad Yadav has already ruled out resignation of Chief Minister Rabri Devi and charged the NDA with engineering a sinister design to demoralise and destabilise the Rabri Devi ministry.

The Bihar Government has sounded a red alert in extremist-infested districts of Aurangabad, Nawada, Gaya, Jehanabad, Bhojpur and part of Patna in the wake of growing massacres in the state.

State Home Secretary U.N. Panjiyar said here today the state government would seek additional battalions of central paramilitary forces to prevent growing incidents of caste carnage.

Mr Panjiyar said the state administration was hard pressed in dealing with the situation in view of the withdrawal of paramilitary forces by the Centre last year. The state had five battalions of central forces at present and would request the Centre to send at least four more.

Stressing the need for strengthening the intelligence network in the state, he said intelligence reports play a vital role in preventing such attacks. He said a special training programme would also be launched for intelligence personnel.

He said the police force had been sent to different training institutes of central police force for containing violence. The state government was also emphasising on construction and repair of roads in the violence-prone areas for better patrolling.

Meanwhile, a Dehri-on-Sone report said police force had been deployed at Sakla village under Karakat block in Rohtas district today after tension flared up between the Ranvir Sena and the CPI (ML) over the payment of minimum wages to agricultural labourers.

The District Magistrate of Rohtas Mr W.A. Anjum, said the central police force was patrolling the area. He said a meeting of farmers and labourers was held at the village in the presence of the CPI (ML) MLA from Karakat, Mr Arun Kumar Singh, for sorting out the issue.

The district police chief appealed to the farmers to pay minimum wages fixed by the government.

CPI (ML) supporters had roughed up a farmer, Mr Manrakhan Pandey, of Sakla village and handed him over to the police along with illegal firearms on June 16. The party activists charged him with threatening CPI (ML)) leaders. Relatives of Mr Pandey had also filed an FIR with the police station concerned alleging that CPI (ML)) workers kidnapped the farmer and implicated him in a false case of possessing illegal firearms.

Extremist activity in Sakla village began as early as 1985 when ultras looted four rifles from a police picket after killing a police officer.

The RJD president Mr Laloo Prasad Yadav, today charged the Prime Minister, Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee, with trying to instigate the Congress to destabilise the Rabri Devi ministry on recurring carnages by ultra organisations.

Sharply reacting to the Prime Minister’s statement that President’s rule could not be imposed in the state as his government did not enjoy majority in the Rajya Sabha, Mr Yadav told reporters that NDA allies were hell bent on instigating the Congress to review support to the Rabri ministry.

Describing Mr Vajpayee’s statement as “irresponsible and partisan”, the RJD president said the killings were not related to law and order but ills of the prolonged socio-economic problems.

NEW DELHI: The central committee of the CPI (M-L) on Sunday condemned the brutal massacre by the Ranvir Sena in Bihar, saying that the local police was hand in glove with them.

PM reviews situation

NEW DELHI, June 18 (PTI) — The Prime Minister Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee, today reviewed the situation arising out of Friday’s massacre of 35 persons in Aurangabad district in Bihar at a high-level meeting here.

The Centre is ready to assist the RJD government in Bihar in every way in preventing the killing of innocent people, Mr Vajpayee told the meeting, official sources said.

The Prime Minister has asked Union Agriculture Minister Nitish Kumar, who is currently in Bihar, to contact leaders of various groups to calm down the situation, the sources said.

Those present at the meeting were Minister of State for Home Vidya Sagar Rao, Principal Secretary to Prime Minister Brajesh Mishra, Special Home Secretary M.B. Kaushal and other senior officials.

Condemning the gruesome incident on Friday, the Prime Minister had asked the state government to take stern steps to check violence.