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Seth flags ‘jungle raj’ in Jharkhand amid rising crime
“Law and order in the state has completely broken down. Chief minister Hemant Soren must take immediate cognisance of the kidnapping of Kairav Gandhi and direct the police to act fast. The free run of criminals, mafias and kidnappers in Jharkhand is reminiscent of the jungle raj days in Lalu Prasad Yadav’s Bihar. But Jharkhand must now learn a lesson from Bihar and Uttar Pradesh on how to wipe out organised crime,” Union minister of state for defence Sanjay Seth told the media.
Union minister of state for defence Sanjay Seth on Friday met the family of kidnapped young industrialist Kairav Gandhi, where he alleged that the present law and order situation in Jharkhand reminded him of the “jungle raj of Lalu Prasad Yadav-led Bihar”.
The Union minister’s statement comes at a time when the police have not made any breakthrough even after 72 hours, though suspicion has fallen on the Chotu Yadav–Rakesh John gang of Bihar, officials close to the matter said.
“Law and order in the state has completely broken down. Chief minister Hemant Soren must take immediate cognisance of the kidnapping of Kairav Gandhi and direct the police to act fast. The free run of criminals, mafias and kidnappers in Jharkhand is reminiscent of the jungle raj days in Lalu Prasad Yadav’s Bihar. But Jharkhand must now learn a lesson from Bihar and Uttar Pradesh on how to wipe out organised crime,” Seth told the media after meeting ASIA VP Devang Gandhi, father of Kairav, and his family at their Circuit House area residence in Jamshedpur on Friday.
The Union minister cited the recent abduction of two siblings, Anshu and Anshika, from Ranchi and said that it was because of Bajrang Dal activists and common people that the police were able to recover the children safely from Ramgarh after several days.
“East Singhbhum DC and SSP are seriously looking into the kidnapping case, and we hope for a positive result. On the one hand, CM Hemant Soren is touring Europe to bring investments; on the other hand, industrialists are getting kidnapped, forcing businessmen and industrialists to think of shifting out of the state,” lamented Seth.
The minister also cited the instance of a police raid on the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) office in Ranchi on Thursday and said that “anarchy is ruling the state”.
“These types of actions demoralise agencies working neutrally and independently, and the corrupt are morally boosted. This is not federalism. The high court and the Supreme Court have set things in the right perspective both in Jharkhand and West Bengal,” said Seth.
Meanwhile, the special investigation team (SIT), comprising Jamshedpur and Seraikela-Kharsawan police, remained clueless in the kidnapping of Kairav Gandhi even after 72 hours, even as insiders said that the ransom demand has now been hiked to ₹10 crore.
“The needle of suspicion is now on the Chotu Yadav–Rakesh John gang of Bihar, with some links to a criminal tie-up between the Sujit Sinha gang and Dubai-based Prince Khan gang. The Scorpio with a police sticker was using a fake number of a Bolero and has been traced to Bundu. Teams are conducting raids in Bihar, Jharkhand, Delhi, Bengal and Gujarat. The kidnappers are constantly changing vehicles and locations. The route taken by them seems to be Bundu to Purulia to Koderma to Nawada and so on. Khatta Bablu from the Jemco locality of Jamshedpur has been detained for possible links,” an investigator said on condition of anonymity.
The Prince Khan–Sujit Sinha gang had demanded ₹2 crore as extortion money and fired upon liquor trader Hareram Singh in Jamshedpur on October 10 last year.
Similarly, the Chotu Yadav–Rakesh John gang has been infamous for high-profile kidnappings, such as that of Mahavir Jain of Gomiya in 2008. The gang had kidnapped Sohel Hingora, the son of a Gujarat diamond merchant, who was reportedly released after payment of a ₹25 crore ransom. The gang had also kidnapped Tejpal Singh of the Barakar area. Patna police arrested Rakesh John in a kidnapping case in 2010, but he was released on bail in 2011.
