The Jharkhand state president of the Rashtriya Rajput Karni Sena, Vinay Singh, has been found dead with a gunshot wound to his head near a dhaba in Jamshedpur’s Baliguma area, police said.
According to officers, they are yet to determine whether the death on Sunday was a case of murder or suicide.
Singh, who had been associated with the Karni Sena since 2017, had been missing since Saturday and his family had filed a missing person complaint with the police.
After his body was found near the dhaba on NH-33, Karni Sena supporters blocked the road at Dimna Chowk, demanding the immediate arrest of those responsible.
Rural Superintendent of Police Rishabh Garg told The Indian Express that gunshot residue was found on Singh’s left hand, raising suspicions about whether the death was suicide or murder. “There is no clarity in the case. We are investigating from both angles. The presence of gunshot residue on his hand suggests suicide, while the gunshot wound to the head indicates murder. We cannot rule out either possibility at this stage,” he said.
Garg also said that the body was sent for postmortem. “We cannot reach any conclusion until the bullet is extracted from his head and matched with his weapon. The motive is still unclear. According to his relatives, he had no known enmity with anyone,” Garg said.
Karni Sena’s pradesh adhyaksh, Praveen Singh, termed the incident “institutional murder” and issued a 48-hour ultimatum to the government to arrest the perpetrators. “He (Vinay Singh) had been associated with the organisation since 2017. His death has shocked us. Crimes are being committed openly in Jharkhand and the government has failed to maintain law and order. This murder was carried out with the government’s support, as they are sheltering the criminals,” he alleged.
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The Karni Sena has warned the government to take swift action within 48 hours, failing which they will launch a state-wide agitation.
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