Patna bizman murder: Accused arrives at Gopal Khemka's funeral with garland, arrested

Gopal Khemka

One of the accused in the Gopal Khemka murder case was arrested during the businessman’s funeral in Patna, Bihar. The accused was taken into custody as he arrived at the ceremony with a flower garland, reported CNN-News18, citing sources.

As per the report, three criminals had gathered near a tea stall in the Daldali area before committing the act. The miscreants had tea there, after which one of them went to Khemka’s residence and shot him dead.

It was also known that the main accused had been absconding in an earlier auto driver murder case in Patna.

Khemka was shot dead by an unidentified armed assailant outside his house in Gandhi Maidan locality at 11.40 pm on July 4 as he was about to alight from his car, the report added. His mortal remains were consigned to flames at Gulbi Ghat on July 6. A large number of businessmen and industrialists attended Khemka’s cremation.

Soon after the incident, a CCTV video surfaced showing the moment when the businessman was shot dead.

Bihar government assures businessmen of security

On Sunday, the Bihar government came out with an assurance that all such issues will be looked into and addressed after multiple businessmen in the state flagged security concerns in the aftermath of Khemka’s murder, the report added.

Chief Secretary (CS) Amrit Lal Meena, whom a delegation of Bihar Industries Association (BIA) had met a day earlier, was quoted by NEWS18 saying that security will be given to the business community as per norms.

“A delegation met me. I have assured them of appropriate security as per norms. Some of them have also asked for arms licences, which in any case is given to businessmen," Meena told news agency PTI.

As per the report, BIA President KPS Keshri also termed the matter “serious", and said the concerns of the businessmen would be looked into.

“The incident is a matter of serious concern. This has certainly put a question mark on the law and order situation in the state. A BIA delegation led by me met the CS and Bihar DGP on Saturday and discussed the security concerns of businessmen and industrialists at length. The CS and DGP have assured us that our concerns will be looked into and it will be addressed on a priority basis," he was quoted by News18.

Bihar Chamber of Commerce and Industries (BCCI) Vice-President Ashish Shankar alleged that though Khemka was shot dead near Gandhi Maidan police station, it took several hours for the police to reach the spot.

“It’s shocking. It reminds us of the days of Jungle Raj. The BCCI and BIA will soon sit together and chalk out a detailed plan concerning security aspects of businessmen and industrialists, which will be discussed with the authorities concerned in the government," Shankar told PTI on Sunday.

Talking to reporters outside Khemka’s house on Sunday, industrialist Ajay Singh claimed that he also received threats from criminals and brought the matter to the notice of the CM and Home department, but nothing happened.

“There is no redressal system for such complaints. We used to hear about Jungle-Raj. But apparently, the current situation in the state is not different. Government and the authorities concerned must take appropriate steps to improve the situation," the industrialist was quoted by News18.