New Delhi Nov 2 (IANS) In a major pre-election development, police have arrested JD(U)’s candidate from Mokama, Anant Singh, in connection with the murder of Jan Suraaj worker Dularchand Yadav.

The arrest, confirmed by Patna Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Kartikeya Sharma, comes just days before the first phase of Bihar Assembly elections, scheduled for November 6, sending shockwaves across the state’s political circles.

According to officials, the incident occurred on Thursday, October 30, near Khushhal Chak in Mokama. Jan Suraaj Party candidate Piyush Priyadarshi, also known as Lallu Mukhiya, was campaigning with his supporters, accompanied by 75-year-old Dularchand Yadav, a local strongman and former RJD leader. Around the same time, Anant Singh and his supporters were reportedly passing through the same route.

An argument between the two groups quickly turned into a violent confrontation involving stone pelting and physical clashes. In the chaos, Dularchand Yadav sustained fatal injuries and was declared dead soon after.

Following his death, the region plunged into tension, with heavy police deployment ordered to prevent further escalation.

Violence continued the next day as the convoy of RJD candidate Veena Devi, wife of former MP Surajbhan Singh, came under attack in the Pandarak area. Eyewitnesses said unidentified miscreants surrounded her convoy and hurled stones, damaging several vehicles and injuring at least one person.

Anant Singh, 58, is no stranger to controversy, having faced multiple criminal cases over the years. His arrest just before polling has added a new twist to the already volatile political contest in Mokama, a constituency long associated with political muscle power and factional rivalry.

Further investigations are underway, and additional arrests may follow as they continue to probe the violent clashes that have marred the run-up to the Bihar elections.

–IANS

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