Shots fired near Tejashwi Yadav’s residence in Patna ahead of PM Narendra Modi’s Bihar visit

NEW DELHI: A day before Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s scheduled visit to Bihar, two motorcycle-borne assailants opened fire in a high-security zone of Patna on Thursday morning, triggering concern just metres away from the official residences of several top leaders and bureaucrats, police said. The incident took place in the Polo Road area, which houses the residences of ministers, senior officials, and the Leader of Opposition in the Bihar Assembly, Tejashwi Yadav. No injuries were reported. "Immediately after receiving the information, a team from the Airport Police Station reached the spot and recovered a spent cartridge. According to eyewitnesses, two motorcycle-borne miscreants fired at a local person, identified as Rahul, and fled.

Rahul was unhurt," said Sub-Divisional Police Officer (Sachivalaya-1) Anu Kumari. A case has been registered and efforts are on to trace and arrest the shooters, she added. The site of the firing is close to the official residences of chief minister Nitish Kumar and Governor Arif Mohammed Khan, making the incident all the more alarming ahead of the Prime Minister’s visit to Siwan on Friday. Reacting sharply, Tejashwi Yadav accused the NDA government of shielding criminals. In a post on X, he wrote, “Bullet shots were fired outside my residence today. In the NDA-ruled Bihar, the morale of criminals, protected by the government, is so high that they are roaming freely in the high-security zone. They fired and fled the spot.” He further added, “Still, NDA leaders will not call it jungle raj. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is coming to Bihar tomorrow, so the 'godi' media has to maintain a positive image.”