Kidnapped teenager's body recovered in Bihar

Nalanda/Jehanabad (Bihar), May 4: The body of a Class VIII school student, who was kidnapped for ransom from Nalanda district, was found from a panchayat bhawan in neighbouring Jehanabad district today, triggering protests from locals who blocked roads and pelted stones at policemen leaving an officer injured.

Nalanda Deputy Superintendent of Police Sarvendu Bharti said the deceased, Ritik Raj (15), was kidnapped on May one for ransom from Ekangarsarai town of Nalanda district.

The student had left home at Ekangarsarai at around 6 PM on Sunday with a friend to play cricket, officials said. Ritik's father Niranjan Prasad, who owns a rice mill, later received a call demanding a ransom of Rs 50 lakh, following which he lodged an FIR with Ekangarsarai police.

Bharti said the teenager might have been killed the same day by the kidnappers somewhere between Bolbigha and Koyribigha villages and the body was dumped at the nearby panchayat bhawan which is in a deserted place.

As the news of the murder reached Ekangarsarai, angry locals put up road blockades in protest and pelted stones towards policemen injuring one officer.

Additional police force have been deployed at the site to bring the situation under control, he said. Bharti said an accused identified as Viku Kumar has been arrested and police are interrogating him. The body has been sent to Ekangarsarai after postmortem at Jehanabad sadar hospital.

PTI