Bihar Police arrests ex-MLA Anant Singh over Dular Chand Yadav death case

Patna: Controversial former Bihar MLA Anant Singh, who seeks to reclaim Mokama seat on a ticket of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's JD(U), was arrested in a late-night operation on Saturday over the death of Jan Suraaj supporter Dular Chand Yadav, a senior police official said.

Singh, who has been under the scanner since the killing of Yadav, who recently clashed with his sympathisers, was picked up from his house in Barh, about 200 km from the state capital.

Senior Superintendent of Police, Patna, Kartikeya Sharma, confirmed the arrest but did not provide further details.

Yadav died while he was campaigning for Jan Suraaj Party's candidate Piyush Priyadarshi in Patna's Mokama area on Thursday. The incident had taken place in the Mokama Taal area, which is close to Bhadaur and Ghoswari police stations.

According to the post-mortem report of Yadav, he died of cardiorespiratory failure due to shock caused by injury to the heart and lungs.

The police registered four FIRs in connection with the incident. JD(U) candidate Singh has been named as an accused along with four others in one of the FIRs registered on the basis of a complaint filed by the grandson of the deceased.

According to official sources, the multiple-term former MLA, whose wife Neelam Devi currently represents the Mokama seat, has also been booked for model code of conduct violation as instances of his moving about in large cavalcades have come to the fore.

When asked about the killing of Yadav, Singh had admitted to a clash between his supporters and the deceased, but also sought to put the blame on Suraj Bhan, his old rival in the underworld and local politics, whose wife Veena Devi is contesting the seat on an RJD ticket.