Bihar ex-chief minister Jitan Ram Manjhi’s son Praveen Kumar was detained on Sunday by the Bihar Police for carrying cash worth Rs 4.65 lakh in his sports utility vehicle (SUV), less than a month before the commencement of Assembly polls in the state.
He was later released after furnishing a bond.
Praveen was detained near Makhdumpur, from where Manjhi was elected to the Assembly in 2010.
Praveen told the police the amount was meant for construction of his house in the Kankarbagh area in Patna.
Not satisfied with his reply, the cops took him to the Makhdumpur police station, where he was detained and questioned by senior officers.
It may be noted that the incident took place when Jitan Ram Manjhi, an ally of the BJP-led NDA, was driving a hard bargain for a larger pie in the seat-sharing pact.
It is believed that somebody tipped off the police about Manjhi’s son carrying cash as Manjhi proved a hard bargainer and talks over seat sharing made little headway.
The police had been conducting similar search operations throughout the state.
Even on Saturday, the Government Railway Police seized Rs 5 lakh from one Sashi Ranjan, a businessman accompanied by BJP MLA from Pirpainti (in Bhagalpur) Aman Kumar.
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