Four people have been arrested so far in connection with the murder of a local journalist from Bihar's Araria, the police said on Saturday, 19 August.
Thirty-five-year-old Vimal Kumar Yadav, who was a journalist working for the Dainik Jagran newspaper, was shot dead at his house on Friday.
The incident: According to the police, the gunmen knocked at Yadav's door at around 5:30 AM on Friday morning and shot him when he opened it.
Upon hearing gunfire, Yadav's wife ran outside to see what had happened and found her husband lying in a pool of blood.
"In the morning someone was knocking at the door of the house and taking his (Yadav's) name. We both got up and he went to open the door of the house. As soon as he opened the main gate there was a sound of gunfire," Pooja Devi, the wife of the deceased journalist, said.
Meanwhile, the Bihar Police said, "Four of the accused, namely Vipin Yadav, Bhavesh Yadav, Ashish Yadav and Umesh Yadav have been arrested. Two accused, namely Rupesh Yadav and Kranti Yadav, are in Araria jail and the Police are taking them on remand. Two accused are absconding," India Today reported.
Suspected motive: Two years ago, the victim's brother Kumar Shashibhushan – a sarpanch – had been shot and killed in a similar manner.
Yadav was the main witness in the case, and it is suspected that this might have been the reason behind the murder.
According to Yadav's family, some miscreants had earlier tried to prevent him from testifying in the case of his brother's murder. However, despite allegedly receiving threats, he still testified in the case.
Yadav's family also said that he had applied for a gun license fearing threats against his life. However, he was unable to obtain it despite repeated efforts.
The police had earlier said that the body of the deceased person had been sent for postmortem.
"Dainik Jagran journalist Vimal was shot dead by four people in Raniganj Bazar area at around 5:30 AM today. FSL team is on the spot, the body of the deceased has been recovered and taken for postmortem. Efforts are on to nab the accused," Araria Superintendent of Police Ashok Kumar Singh said.
Bihar CM expresses sorrow: Meanwhile, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar expressed his condolences over the killing, calling the incident "dukhad" (sad).
"How can a journalist be killed like this," Kumar said while speaking to the press in Patna, adding that he had ordered a thorough investigation into the case.
Yadav has left behind his wife, a 15-year-old son and a 13-year-old daughter.
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