The shocking incident took place around 3 am on Friday, shortly after Abhay had returned from a “social gathering.” Sources close to the family said a brawl took place between Abhay and his wife, who rebuked him for frequently “partying” till late night. In the scuffle that followed, Abhay, who was in an inebriated condition, gunned down his wife and their six-month-old daughter with a rifle lying nearby. Before other members of the family could react in the ministerial bungalow at 8 Strand Road in Patna, Abhay shot himself dead.
Shocked over the triple murder in his family, Narendra Singh was rushed to Patna Medical College and Hospital after he complained of acute chest pain. As the news spread, relatives and family friends rushed to the site. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, former chief minister Rabri Devi and other ministerial colleagues reached there to offer their condolences. “It’s unbelievable…. It’s a great loss to my party and the government,” remarked Nitish, while trying to console the family.
Abhay, a two-term MLA, was elected to the Bihar Assembly for the first time from Chakai in February 2005 on a Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) ticket. But the House was kept in suspended animation due to the fractured mandate and later dissolved on the recommendation of the then Governor Buta Singh. The same year (in October 2005) Abhay was again elected an MLA but this time from Jamui and as a Nitish’s nominee. He would have been inducted into the ministry had his father Narendra Singh, an MLC who switched over from the LJP to the JD (U), not thrown his hat in the ring.
Jusrt 36-year-old, Abhay was married in 2005 and had two daughters. His three-year-old elder daughter escaped the jaws of death as she was sleeping with her grandmother in another room.
Meanwhile, the Patna police have seized the rifle used in the shooting incident, and also recovered three cartridges.
Late in the afternoon, the bodies of Abhay, Soni and Rashi were cremated at Gulabi Ghat on the banks of the Ganga. “It’s still tough for me to believe how a person like Abhay, who was always brimming with enthusiasm, could do this. It’s really unfortunate,” said Nitish Mishra, MLA and JD (U) son of former chief minister Jagannath Mishra.
DH News Service