When patients across India are dying for want of oxygen a trader in Patna was shot dead by a fellow businessman over a dispute on the sale of oxygen on Saturday (April 24).
Sanjeev Kumar Sinha (45) was killed and his employee Sunny Kumar was injured when Sonu Gupta (35), a trader dealing in surgical items opened fire after a dispute over the sale of oxygen.
According to the Superintendent of Police (Patna central) Vinay Tiwari, the murder was probably the fallout of rivalry over the sale of oxygen cylinders between the two. The incident has been caught in CCTV camera and raids are on to arrest Sonu and his accomplice.
Station House Officer of Pirbahore police station Rizwan Ahmed Khan said that Sanjeev was shot twice in the chest and died while on the way to nearby Patna Medical College and Hospital (PMCH). Three empty cartridges have been recovered from the spot.
The murder took place at around 1 pm in the busy Govind Mitra Road, the largest wholesale medicine hub of Bihar. The killing sent shockwaves leading to the closure of the market at a time when the state is facing an acute health crisis.
As the premier health centre of Bihar, the PMCH is in the vicinity, sensation and panic gripped the whole area.
The incident took place on the day Bihar reported 12,359 positive cases of Corona virus and 77 deaths. Patna alone accounted for 25 deaths which is the highest in the state. It reported 2,479 fresh cases on Saturday.
Unlike last year, Bihar is witnessing faster spread of COVID-19. Fifty-nine deaths were reported on April 22 in the state and a day later, 54 died.
