Khagaria carnage: Bihar CM suspends Khagaria SP, SDPO

"The chief minister has taken strong exception to the massacre and suspended Khagaria SP Indranand Mishra and SDPO Ajay Kumar Pandey. They have been charged with dereliction of duty, serious lapses and failure to reach the spot immediately after the incident," Additional Director General (Headquaters) Neelmani told reporters. The decision to suspend the officials was taken late last night but the notification was issued on Sunday, the ADG said.

Additional SP of Aurangabad Anusuiya Ramsingh has been asked to take over the charge of Khagaria SP while Nalanda Deputy Superintendent of Police Manoj Kumar Tiwary as the SDPO with immediate effect. In a late Thursday night attack, heavily-armed suspected Maoists swooped down on Amosi Bharen village in Bihar's Khagaria district and shot dead 16 villagers, mostly teenagers, after tying their hands and feet.

Neelmani said 15 people, icluding the alleged mastermind of the carnage O P Shah alias O P Mahto, have been arrested while 10 more have been detained by the police in this case. Police has registered a named FIR against 37 people, he said. Terming the arrest of Shah as a major breakthrough, the ADG said that personnel of Special Task Force (STF), Bihar Military Police and Special Auxilliary Police had carried out search and combing operation in the riverine area of Saharsa, Khagaria and Naugahchia for the thrid consecutive day.

"Though the incident appeared to be a case of prolonged dispute over a piece of land, but the involvement of Maoists were also being probed," Neelmani said, adding also the political conspiracy angle was being investigated by the Inspector General (Operations), S K Bhardwaj and IG (Bhagalpur zone) A R Kinni, who are camping at the village. Meanwhile, holding the NDA government responsible for the carnage, opposition parties RJD, LJP, Left parties and Congress has demanding Nitish Kumar's resignation owing the moral responsibility for his failure to reign in spiralling crime graph in Bihar.