Nitish govt attracts flak from ally and opposition alike over killing of Indigo Airlines employee

Patna: The Nitish Kumar government sunk into a difficult position as it drew flak from its ally, Bharatiya Janata Party and the Opposition parties alike after an Indigo Airlines station manager was shot dead by some unidentified bike-borne assailants near the Shastri Nagar police station area here.

Police said that Rupesh Kumar Singh (40) was entering his Kusumvila apartment at Punaichak locality at around 7.30 p.m. on Tuesday when the assailants opened fire at him. Singh sustained 20 bullet injuries and was rushed to a nearby hospital, where the doctors declared him brought dead.

Nitin Naveen, BJP MLA from Patna's Bankipur, who visited the incident site on Wednesday said that Bihar police should adopt Uttar Pradesh's model of encounters to deal with the criminals.

Following the killing, several political leaders cutting across party lines reached Singh's home and extended their condolences to his family members.

BJP leader Vivek Thakur said that Patna police should either crack the case within 3 to 5 days, or it should be transferred to the CBI.

Thakur also lashed out at the Nitish government saying that he has no faith in it.

"People like Singh have no criminal background. Still, assailants gunned him down outside his home and that poses a question to the state government," the BJP leader said.

"If we delay in handing over the case to the CBI, it might turn out to be like the Sushant Singh Rajput case where the agency has failed to make any headway due to inadequate evidence," he added.

"Who are behind Singh's murder? He was a private firm employee. The state government should ascertain the reason for his death."

BJP's Maharajganj MP Janardan Singh Sigriwal said: "I have known Singh's family for long. I pulled some strings to get him transferred from Kolkata to Patna. I demand that the DGP arrest his killers soon."

RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav also lashed out at against Nitish Kumar.

The young leader told reporters, "The crime rate is rapidly increasing in the state. I've said this time and again that he (Nitish Kumar) is a 'selected and nominated' chief minister. The BJP selected and elected him and he is not able to manage the home department. What is surprising is that along with the opposition, the BJP (the alliance partner of the government) is also asking questions. This is comical because the BJP is a part of the government. Bihar had never seen two deputy chief ministers and which party these two deputy chief ministers belong to? They are from the BJP."

The RJD leader also asked Prime Minister Modi why he was wary of declaring jungle raj in Bihar.

Modi and other leaders of his party had repeatedly accused the RJD's 15 years of governance in the state as 'jungle raj.'

"Who is king of jungle raj?," Tejashwi asked.