LAHAN (SIRAHA), Dec 3: Sangita Devi Yadav of Lalbhitiya in Naraha Rural Municipality-4, Siraha, is currently undergoing treatment at the emergency ward of Provincial Hospital Lahan after fainting upon hearing the news of her husband's murder while he tried to stop liquor smugglers. When she occasionally regains consciousness, she murmurs, "Who will my daughters call papa now?" Her daughters, too, cry for their father, searching and weeping uncontrollably.
Armed Police Force Sub-Inspector (SI) Laxman Yadav was killed when a vehicle ran over him while he tried to stop liquor smugglers. Following his death, his wife Sangita Devi and their two daughters have been left in the lurch. Other relatives are also grieving the tragedy. SI Yadav was the sole breadwinner of the family. His daughters, Sushmita and Sujata, are currently studying in Kathmandu, in grades 11 and 12, respectively. Sunday morning’s incident has brought immense devastation to the family. The cries of the mother and daughters at Provincial Hospital Lahan brought tears to the eyes of the onlookers.
At around 2 AM on Sunday morning, a Scorpio jeep loaded with illegal liquor was speeding toward Jhalon across the border from Chhotki Toli Kachanari in Bariyarpatti Rural Municipality-1. Acting on information about the liquor-laden jeep, Armed Police Sub-Inspector Yadav and his team had planned an ambush.
When the jeep entered the village, Yadav attempted to stop it. However, the jeep ran him over and fled across the border. Yadav, severely injured and left in a critical state, was rushed to the Ram Kumar Sharda Uma Prasad Murarka Provincial Hospital in Lahan for treatment at around 3 AM, where doctors pronounced him dead.
Yadav was stationed at the Armed Police Base Camp in Badahari. The liquor-laden Scorpio jeep ran over him near the settlement of Janaki Nagar, about 500 meters north of the Nepal-India border, before fleeing into India. Acting on a tip-off about a large quantity of liquor being smuggled out of Nepal via the jeep, Yadav, along with a team of eight personnel from the Armed Police Force and Nepal Police, had been deployed to intercept the vehicle.
Following the incident, locals of Jhalon and Janaki Nagar are living in fear. "The liquor-laden jeep passed through here toward Jhalon," said a local from Janaki Nagar. "Those who ran over the Armed Police Sub-Inspector might be hiding in the village across the border."
Kachanari has long been known as a hub for liquor smuggling. It is not uncommon for liquor-laden jeeps to be smuggled across the border at night from warehouses operating along the Postal Highway in Bariyarpatti Rural Municipality. Some locals of this village are involved in such activities.
The Baraiyarpatti border area in Siraha has become a hotspot for alcohol smuggling. Locals report that alcohol is being smuggled through vehicles with Indian license plates, including Scorpio jeeps, motorcycles, and bicycles.
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"How can we dare speak out against liquor smugglers bold enough to kill an Armed Police Sub-Inspector by running over him?" said an elderly from Janaki Nagar. "This operation cannot continue without the collusion of high-ranking officers from the Armed Police and Nepal Police. Speaking out against it puts our lives at risk. Smugglers capable of killing a junior police officer trying to stop a liquor shipment are no ordinary criminals."
The Janakinagar border point has become a major hub for liquor smuggling, putting the locals at greater risk. Since the government of Bihar, India, enforced a liquor ban, smugglers have been transporting liquor from Nepal to Indian villages and towns near the border. With the collusion of Nepali security personnel, liquor is stored in border markets and transported to Indian cities at opportune times. This smuggling operation has recently proliferated across the border points of all eight districts in Madhesh Province.
Amiri Yadav at the Badahari border point expressed frustration over witnessing the liquor smuggling operation unfold right before his eyes. "As the liquor smuggling business thrives, the residents of this region have started feeling increasingly unsafe," he said. Relatives of Laxman Yadav believe he lost his life after getting caught in the web of a larger smuggling racket. The family is demanding strict legal action against those involved in the murder.
Last year, an Indian Border Security Force Head Constable, Devaraj Sharma, was killed when he tried to stop a liquor-laden Scorpio jeep near the Indian town of Jogiya. The Scorpio, filled with liquor, was speeding from Lagdigoth in Siraha Municipality-21, heading towards Jayanagar via Jogiya.
Head Constable Sharma had tried to stop the liquor-laden jeep, which had entered Jogiya village under the Dalniya Police Post in India's Madhubani district. However, the speeding jeep ran over Sharma and fled. Sharma, covered in blood, was rushed to the Jayanagar hospital for treatment, where doctors declared him dead.
Despite repeated arrests, the smuggling of liquor has not stopped and has instead become more organized and widespread. Due to incidents where liquor smugglers have run over Indian and Nepal’s Armed Police with vehicles, locals on both sides of the border are living in fear.
The border points of Siraha, including Thadi, Abhaynagar, Bariyarpatti, Narangi, Janakinagar, Madar, Lagidgoth, Budhaura, and Jhajhapatti, have become a haven for liquor smugglers. These points have recently become the main centers for liquor smuggling. In coordination with border security forces, an organized network of smugglers operates on both sides, storing liquor from the Nepali market in border areas and transporting them to Indian cities at opportune moments.
With the increase in liquor smuggling, liquor shops have been multiplying in Siraha’s border region, and business has grown as well. Locals from Janaki Nagar say that some liquor shop owners even employ smugglers.
Meanwhile, the Armed Police and Nepal Police, deployed for border security, claim that there is no liquor smuggling at the border. Armed Police Battalion Commander (SP) Naresh Bhandari in Siraha denied any liquor smuggling, outrightly rejecting the claim that lower-ranking officers, in collusion with higher-ranking officials, were involved in the smuggling. However, after the incident on Sunday morning, when a liquor-laden jeep passing through Kachanari ran over and killed an Armed Police Sub-Inspector, he was forced to admit that liquor smuggling was indeed taking place.
He stated that the incident in which Armed Police SI Yadav was killed while trying to stop the liquor-laden jeep was merely a coincidence. It has been revealed that the jeep was a white-colored Scorpio filled with liquor. Since the jeep went across the border, a search operation is ongoing in coordination with the Indian police.
Liquor smugglers fear the Indian police and the Border Security Force more than the Nepalese security forces. As a result, smugglers, based on the Nepali side of the border, often look for an opportunity when the Indian SSP patrols are less active. The chiefs of Nepal Police and Armed Police Force have stated that they will adopt a zero-tolerance approach to curb smuggling at the border points in Madhesh. However, no effective measures have been implemented so far. The location where Yadav was killed on Sunday morning is 500 meters south of Jhalon, an Indian market.
Recently, Nepali alcohol brands like Golden Oak and Kasturi have been increasingly smuggled across the border. Due to the ban in Bihar, the demand for Nepali alcohol has surged in the border markets.
Smuggling operations are mostly carried out at night through vehicles like jeeps and motorcycles from areas including Belhi, Jhukti, Barsain, Pato in Saptari, and Thadi, Baraiyarpatti, and Mader in Siraha.
Identity of person involved in murder of SI Yadav revealed
The identity of the person involved in the murder of SI Yadav has been revealed.
Siraha's Police Chief, SP Ramesh Pandit, confirmed that the identity of those involved in the murder of Yadav has been revealed. During the interrogation of two individuals who were arrested shortly after the incident, the identity of the person and the vehicle involved was confirmed.
Pandit stated that the two individuals were taken into custody on Sunday, and as their statements are being recorded, they have not been made public immediately.
He mentioned that the vehicle used in the incident and the individuals involved have been identified. SP Pandit told Republica, "We have taken two individuals into custody and are investigating the case. Many facts have already come to light and more are still emerging. The vehicle and the involved individuals have been identified; only arrests are pending. It has been confirmed that SP Yadav was killed by being run over by a white-colored Scorpio with an Indian license plate."
He said, "Initial investigations show that the individuals arrested on Sunday are also involved. The extent of their involvement is yet to be determined."
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