"Morale Of Criminals Sky-High": Chirag Paswan's Fresh Fire At Bihar Allies

Hours after five men walked into a Patna hospital and shot dead a criminal out on parole, Union Minister and NDA ally Chirag Paswan targeted the Nitish Kumar-led BJP-JDU government, saying that Bihar's law and order situation has become a cause for concern.

"Murders are happening every day. The morale of criminals is sky-high. The strategy of the police and administration is beyond comprehension. The attack inside Paras hospital in Patna's residential neighbourhood proves that criminals are openly challenging the law and administration," Mr Paswan said in a post on X.

"Criminal incidents right before the Bihar Assembly polls are worrying. Hopefully, the administration will soon take firm steps to bring the law and order system back on track," he added.

This is the second time in a week that Mr Paswan has slammed the Bihar government over the state's crime graph. Earlier, on June 12, he had asked, "How many more murders will Biharis face now? It is beyond understanding what the responsibility of the Bihar Police is."

Five armed men today entered a Bihar hospital, casually walked into a patient's room, shot him dead and escaped. The target, Chandan Mishra, was a hardened criminal with dozens of murder cases against him. He was out on parole on medical grounds. Police believe that a rival gang is behind the chilling attack.

Deputy Chief Minister Vijay Sinha has assured that the criminals would be caught. "Such an incident is unfortunate. It will be thoroughly investigated and the criminal will not be spared. The Chief Minister of Bihar has said the criminal will be caught and strictly punished."

The hospital shooting has yet again spotlighted the law and order situation in the Bihar capital, which has made headlines for multiple cases of murder in the past few weeks. Among those killed are businessmen Gopal Khemka, BJP leader Surendra Kewat and lawyer Jitendra Mahato.

NDTV spoke to Bihar's Director General of Police (DGP) Vinay Kumar amid the discussion surrounding the state's law and order situation. "Various measures are being taken to control crime. If we compare crime rates over time, around 2004, approximately four atrocities occurred daily. Since then, the number of murders has gradually decreased. Last year, around 2,700 murders were reported, a reduction of about 1,300 compared to 2004," Mr Kumar told NDTV.