Bihar: Journalists hold protest in Patna after murder of colleague in Araria

Patna (Bihar) [India], August 18 : Members of the Bihar Working Journalists Union on Friday staged a protest in Patna over the murder of a journalist in the Araria district. They asked the state government to ensure the safety of journalists across the state. 
The journalist, identified as Vimal Kumar Yadav, was allegedly shot dead at his home by unidentified assailants in the Raniganj Bazaar area in the district, police said earlier on Friday.  
"Journalist Vimal Yadav was shot by the unknown accused. After getting the information of the incident Raniganj police station sent the body for postmortem. Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) and dog squad are called to the incident site," J.S. Gangwar, ADG, Headquarters (Bihar Police) said. 
"From the information received through relatives we got to know that in 2019, Vimal's brother was also killed. The trial was ongoing and the deceased's testimony was yet to happen. Relatives are suggesting this as the reason for the murder. Araria police are on the site and doing the investigations," the police officer added. 
Meanwhile, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar termed the incident 'unfortunate'. Speaking to reporters, the Bihar CM said, "It is a very unfortunate incident. How can someone kill a person this way? I have asked the officials to inquire into it." 
Reacting to the murder, Union Minister Ashwini Kumar Choubey on Friday blamed the "poor" law and order situation in the state for the incident.
"There is no law and order rule in Bihar...Murders are rampant in the state...Criminals have their spirits very high in Bihar...Today, Bihar is emerging as a crime state in the country..," Ashwini Kumar Choubey said.