JCB machine set ablaze by armed prsons at Bhojpur village

Kumar Rajiv Nayan

Ara : Six persons carrying arms set ablaze a JCB machine being used for digging soil for brick kiln on the outskirts of village Pachrukhia-Irnatpur under Hasan Bazaar police outpost under Piro Sub-Division in Bhojpur district late June 23, 2017. They also fired at least a dozen rounds in the air to create panic in the area and escaped.

Police recovered six blank cartridges of .312 caliber from the place of occurrence. The JCB machine belonged to the mukhia, Sukhrauli panchayat, Hemant Singh. Old enmity and fight for supremacy in the area are said to be reason behind the incident. An FIR was lodged with Hasan Bazaar police outpost against unidentified miscreants in this connection but no arrest has so far been made in this regard.

DSP, Piro, J  P Rai said that Mukhia, Hemant Singh has a brick kiln at village Kataria village and he was getting the soil dug with his JCB on the outskirts of village Pachrukhia-Irnatpur near Nonar village for  a new brick kiln when the incident took place. He said that the miscreants identified the JCB first and beat its driver Baban Yadav of village Nauhatta in Rohtas district and then took out diesel from the JCB and set it ablaze. The driver informed the Mukhia, who called the Hasan Bazaar police outpost. Police rushed to the spot with the fire brigade but the JCB was completely burnt by that time.

Mukhia Hemant Singh said that about one and half a month ago some armed miscreants had come to his Kataria brick kiln and demanded rangadari with a threat of dire consequences. And when he did not yield to their demand, they burnt the JCB. He said that now his life is at stake and demanded security for himself. But, SHO, Hasan Bazzar police outpost, Narendra Kumar, that it was not related to rangadari. It was fight for supremacy in the area.