Patna: Two fatal attacks linked to land disputes in the Patna region within hours of each other have heightened tensions, with a 32-year-old man killed in Mokama and a woman shot dead in a separate incident in Athmalgola.
Police said Rajiv Kumar was hacked to death with a hoe during a violent clash between two families in the Sahebpur locality of Mokama on Tuesday morning. Three others – Krishna Kumar, Hira Devi and Vivek Kumar – were seriously injured in the attack.
According to initial reports, the violence stemmed from a long-running land dispute between two brothers, Ajay Yadav and Vijay Yadav. The confrontation escalated around 9am when members of Ajay Yadav’s family were returning from the fields after harvesting wheat.
Investigators said Vijay Yadav’s family allegedly launched an attack, leading to a clash involving bricks, stones and sticks. During the altercation, Rajiv Kumar, a relative of Ajay Yadav, was struck with a hoe and died at the scene.
The incident triggered panic in the area, prompting police to rush to the spot. The body was sent to Barh sub-divisional hospital for a postmortem examination.
Authorities said the accused fled after locking their house, but three people have since been arrested. Additional police forces have been deployed in the village amid fears of further unrest. Rural superintendent of police Kundan Kumar is camping in the area to monitor the situation.
In a separate incident earlier the same day in Athmalgola, a woman was shot dead by her brother-in-law, also reportedly over a land dispute, underlining the persistence of such conflicts in the region.
