SAHARSA: In a shocking incident, an undertrial prisoner was shot dead on the Saharsa civil court premises in Bihar on Tuesday. Prabhakar Kumar, 26, who was an accused in a murder case, was being produced before the chief judicial magistrate court when a few assailants started indiscriminate firing, hitting him with at least four bullets. He died while being taken to the hospital.
According to the report, The police have arrested one man, Alok Kumar, and seized a countrymade pistol and live cartridge from him. According to Saharsa Superintendent of Police Lipi Singh, the killing appears to be a revenge killing, and they are investigating the case. Kumar, a resident of Murli Basantpur village under Bangaon police station, was arrested for allegedly killing a fellow villager, Uday Raghuvanshi, on October 5, 2021, over their differences about the Panchayat elections.
The police suspected the involvement of Raghuvanshi’s family in Kumar’s murder. However, the motive behind Kumar’s killing on the court premises is yet to be ascertained. The incident has once again highlighted the issue of security lapses in court premises in Bihar.
The police have intensified security in and around the court premises to prevent any further untoward incident. The incident has also raised questions about the safety of undertrial prisoners and the need to strengthen security measures in court premises across the state.
The Bihar government must take immediate steps to ensure the safety of undertrial prisoners and the general public visiting court premises. Such incidents not only pose a threat to the lives of the accused but also undermine the credibility of the justice system. It is high time that the authorities address the security concerns in court premises to prevent such incidents from happening in the future.