On 15th March 2023, Bihar police rescued retired Indian Air Force (IAF) veteran and Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Sunil Rai, who was kidnapped by miscreants on 14th March 2023. The Saran police in the Chhapra district of Bihar have arrested two persons in connection with the case. They are identified as Mohammad Irfan and Mohammad Alamtab Khan.
सारण जिला के मुफ्फसिल थाना स्थित सा०-साढ़ा निवासी अपहृत सुनील कुमार राय की सकुशल बरामदगी एवं घटना में संलिप्त दो अपराधियों को किया गया गिरफ्तार ।#haintaiyaarham#biharpolice#saranpolice pic.twitter.com/8RDePkThKQ
— SARAN POLICE (@SaranPolice) March 15, 2023
Sunil Rai’s father Ram Vilas Rai had shared details of the kidnapping case that took place on the morning of March 14. The incident took place near the market committee of the Mufassil police station area. Sunil Rai received a call from a person who asked him to meet. After this call, at around 4 am, he left his house and went towards the office.
At the same time, a white Scorpio car arrived there. Some people got down from the car and started dragging Sunil Rai inside the car. He resisted a lot, but the kidnappers dragged him in. After this, all of them fled away. The incident was caught on a CCTV camera. There were around six kidnappers in all, and all of them were carrying weapons. No one else was present around during the incident.
The police issued a press note after Sunil Rai was found safe. In this press note, a case related to land is cited as the prime reason behind the kidnapping. However, according to Ram Vilas Rai, no one has a grudge against his son.
During interrogation, accused Mohammad Alamtab Khan said that they had given Rs 1.80 crore to Sunil Rai to buy land. Of this, Rs 90 lakh was transferred through bank accounts and the rest was given in cash. The accused say that the RJD leader neither gave them the land nor returned the money. Therefore the accused kidnapped Sunil Rai.
According to the accused, their motive was either to take money from the RJD leader or to kill him. The Special Investigation Team of Bihar police raided and recovered the vehicle used in the incident. They also found Sunil Rai’s damaged phone.
SP Gaurav Mangla said, “The incident occurred as a result of a land dispute. Sunil Rai, the RJD leader, was abducted in a land dispute. The police are investigating and will take appropriate measures.”
It is notable that Sunil Rai is a retired Indian Air Force (IAF) veteran, who currently works as a property dealer and he is a leader in the RJD. He hails from Saran. He also contested an election as an independent candidate. Later he joined RJD.
