Bihar trader commits suicide to save daughter from extortionists

Mangalore Today News Network

Muzaffarpur, May 19, 2017: Criminals threat to kidnap his daughter if he did not pay the extortion money allegedly drove a businessman in Bihar to commit suicide.

The body of Mahmood Alam, 45, a wholesaler dealer in fire crackers, was found hanging from a ceiling fan at his Chhata Bazar house in town police station area of Muzaffarpur, 71 km north of state capital Patna, on Thursday night.

The incident comes a few days after two engineers of the National Hydroelectric Power Corporation (NHPC) Limited, posted in Muzaffarpur district, quit Bihar apprehending threat to their lives and said they would never return.

People close to Alam’s family said the businessman took the extreme step after failing to meet the demands of extortionists. “The criminals had threatened to kidnap Alam’s teenaged daughter if he did not pay Rs 5 lakh as protection money for running his business smoothly,” they said.

Trader’s brother Abdur Rehman said Alam had met the senior superintendent of police (SSP) and informed him about the threat. “Had the police acted on time, Alam would not have committed suicide,” Rehman said.

The suicide sparked tension and a police team which arrived at Chhata Bazar to probe the incident was chased away by an angry mob on Friday.

Muzaffarpur SSP Vivek Kumar said a police team had been constituted to look into the matter. He, however, added that it was “beyond comprehension” that a person can commit suicide just for failing to meet the extortion demand. “There is something amiss in the incident, which needs to be investigated,” he said.

Courtesy: Hindustantimes