ALLEGATIONS OF POISONING STEMMING FROM ELECTORAL RIVALRY

ALLEGATIONS OF POISONING STEMMING FROM ELECTORAL RIVALRY

12-MAY-ENG 11

RAJIV NAYAN AGRAWAL

ARA----------------------------The body of a man has been recovered from the fields (badhar) of Chawariya village, located within the jurisdiction of the Narayanpur police station in Bhojpur district. The deceased has been identified as 40-year-old Sanjeet Kumar Singh—alias Tantan Kumar—a resident of Bagwan village under the Garhani police station area. Sanjeet Kumar Singh was a former member of the Panchayat Samiti (Panchayat Committee), and his wife, Pushpa Devi, currently serves as the Deputy Chief of the Garhani block.

Upon receiving news of the incident, Sadar SDPO-I Rajkumar Sah, Piro SDPO Krishna Kumar Singh, Narayanpur SHO Sanjeet Sharma, Garhani SHO Kamaljeet, and Pawana SHO Anish Kumar immediately rushed to the crime scene with additional police reinforcements and initiated an investigation. An FSL (Forensic Science Laboratory) team was also summoned to the site to ensure the proper collection of evidence and to gather scientific clues related to the incident.

The family members of the deceased have expressed strong suspicions regarding a deep-seated conspiracy and electoral rivalry as the motives behind this incident. According to the family, foam was observed frothing from the deceased's mouth; based on this observation, they have leveled serious allegations that he was murdered by poisoning. As news of the incident spread through the village and surrounding areas, it created a sensation across the entire region. Residents remain both concerned and outraged by the nature of the crime and the potential reasons underlying it.

Following the incident, deep resentment and anger gripped the local villagers. Demanding justice and insisting on the immediate arrest of the accused, the villagers staged a road blockade by placing the body near the Bagwan railway crossing. This protest brought traffic to a complete standstill for approximately two hours, resulting in long queues of vehicles stretching along both sides of the road. Recognizing the sensitivity of the situation, police officials arrived at the scene, assured the villagers that appropriate action would be taken, and—after extensive persuasion—succeeded in clearing the blockade. Subsequently, the body was sent to the Sadar Hospital for a post-mortem examination. At present, the exact cause of death is expected to be clearly established only after the post-mortem report is received.