Patna: A key operative of the notorious Lawrence Bishnoi gang was injured in a police encounter in the Masaurhi area of Patna district early Thursday morning, foiling what the police believe was a major criminal plot. The injured accused, Parmanand Yadav, is believed to be the Bihar in-charge of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang and is also closely associated with Rahul Singh in Jharkhand, who is said to have links with the gang.The encounter took place after the Bihar Special Task Force (STF) and local police received specific intelligence that Parmanand had arrived in Patna to execute a major crime. Late Wednesday night, personnel from Beur police station arrested some criminals, but one suspect, later identified as Parmanand, managed to escape and fled towards Jehanabad. A high-speed chase followed for several kilometres before he evaded the police.
At around 4am on Thursday, Masaurhi police surrounded the accused near Lala Bigha village on NH 22. Police personnel asked him to stop his motorcycle, but he attempted to speed away. During the chase, his motorcycle skidded and he fell. Parmanand then allegedly opened fire at the pursuing police team, prompting retaliatory firing in self-defence. A bullet grazed his leg, leaving him injured. No police personnel were injured in the exchange. The accused was immediately taken into custody and admitted to PMCH for treatment.Confirming the incident, city SP (east) Parichay Kumar said some criminals had been arrested by Beur police station, out of whom one criminal managed to escape on a motorcycle. “Beur police informed Masaurhi police that the criminal was heading towards Jehanabad. Upon receiving the information, the police deployed personnel at strategic locations,” he said.“During vehicle-checking, one suspicious person was seen fleeing on a motorcycle. When an attempt was made to stop him, he fell from the bike. After that, he started firing at the police. In self-defence and for their safety, police also resorted to retaliatory firing, in which he was hit by one bullet in his leg. After that, he was taken for treatment,” Kumar said.According to the SP, Parmanand is a resident of Chandwa village in Latehar district of Jharkhand. “He is connected to Rahul Singh’s gang, who is said to be connected with Lawrence Bishnoi. It is suspected that he was trying to expand the infamous gang’s network here. The matter is currently under investigation. More details will emerge after interrogation,” he said.The accused has more than 18–20 criminal cases registered against him and had recently travelled to Malaysia. The weapon used by the accused was recovered from the spot, and an FSL team collected evidence for further investigation.Meanwhile, the other arrested accused were identified as Vicky alias Neeraj Kumar from Jehanabad, Chandan from Jehanabad, and Shivam Anand from Lakhisarai. According to the STF, one revolver, six cartridges, four mobile phones, one passport, Rs 40,000 in cash, and Nepali currency worth Rs 5,110 were recovered from them.Recoveries from Parmanand Yadav included a pistol, two cartridges, one motorcycle, two mobile phones, an Aadhaar card, and a PAN card.“Interrogation revealed his links to Lawrence Bishnoi gang member Badal Singh from Palamu and others involved in extortion through threats to contractors and businessmen in Bihar and Jharkhand. Related extortion cases include incidents in Rohtas, Aurangabad and Buxar districts. Raids are ongoing in coordination with Jharkhand Police to nab other involved accused,” STF officials said.
