Bhagalpur: A Holi evening visit to meet a girlfriend allegedly turned into a violent confrontation in Bihar’s Bhagalpur district, leaving two young men dead and another critically injured. Police have arrested five people in connection with the double murder that occurred in the Naugachia area.
According to police, the main accused, Nitish Kumar, confessed during interrogation that he and other family members of the woman caught three youths at their house and later took them to a riverbank where they were shot.
The incident took place on Holi evening when Anjesh Kumar, a resident of Parbatta in Khagaria district, reportedly went to meet his girlfriend in Morakhia village under the Ismailpur police station limits of Naugachia. He was accompanied by his two friends, Gulshan Kumar (20) and Neeraj Kumar (21).
Police said Anjesh quietly entered the house to meet the woman, while his two friends waited outside and kept watch. Meanwhile, the woman’s family members returned home and allegedly found the two together inside a room, triggering a heated confrontation.
During questioning, the accused reportedly told police that they became enraged after seeing the youth with his sister. The three youths were allegedly caught and later taken to the Kalbaliya river channel, where they were assaulted and shot.
Gulshan Kumar and Neeraj Kumar died on the spot, while Anjesh Kumar sustained serious injuries but managed to escape. He reportedly reached near Tetri temple and sought help from locals, after which the police were informed. He has been admitted to Patna Medical College and Hospital (PMCH) and remains in critical condition.
The bodies of Gulshan and Neeraj were found on Thursday morning near the roadside along the Kalbaliya channel, creating panic in the area. Police reached the spot, recovered the bodies, and sent them for post-mortem before handing them over to their families.
Investigators later revealed that Anjesh had been in a relationship with the woman from the Naugachia area for some time. According to police, the two were introduced through Neeraj, and their friendship gradually developed into a romantic relationship. Because the woman’s marital home was located in Neeraj’s area, the youths frequently visited the locality.
Family members of the victims said Gulshan had travelled to Bhagalpur earlier on Holi day to drop his wife at her parental home in the Ismailpur area. After completing the visit, he and his friends were returning to their village when the incident occurred.
Gulshan’s wife, Kiran Devi, said her husband had left around 4 pm saying he needed to visit a doctor. She later learned about the attack. The couple had been married for less than a year and have a two-month-old child.
Gulshan’s mother, Janki Devi, alleged that the attackers first shot Anjesh, assuming he had died, and then brutally assaulted Gulshan and Neeraj with sticks before shooting them.
Naugachia Superintendent of Police Prerna Kumar said an FIR has been registered and a Special Investigation Team (SIT) has been formed to probe the case. Five people, including the main accused Nitish Kumar and Akhilesh Kumar, have been arrested so far. The woman’s uncle Dev Mandal and a female relative, Sanju Devi, have also been taken into custody.
Police said preliminary investigation suggests the crime was triggered by the alleged relationship between Anjesh and the woman. Raids are underway to arrest other individuals involved in the incident.
