JMM leader Shankar Rawani and wife found murdered

Prima facie it seems that Shankar Rawani (50) and Balika Devi were shot and then stabbed to death at their home in Bhowraarea in Dhanbad city, police said.

Dhanbad: Senior JMM leader Shankar Rawani and his wife were found murdered at their residence in Jharkhand early on Sunday, police said.

Prima facie it seems that Rawani (50) and Balika Devi were shot and then stabbed to death at their home in Bhowraarea in Dhanbad city, Superintendent of Police Ram Kumar said.

An empty cartridge of 9mm pistol and a knife were recovered from the house, he said.

Initial inquiries revealed that both the leaders were murdered in their bedrooms and their bodies were dragged out to the courtyard.

According to Kumar neighbours called the police before Sindri DSP SK Sinha and other officers reached the spot and found two bodies lying in a pool of blood.

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Sniffer dogs have been deployed at the scene of crime and a hunt has been launched to nab the killer, Kumar said.

The murder could be a fallout of old enmity, the officer said.

JMM leader Madan Ram said, "Rawani feared for his life and had alerted the police but it was in vain.

Rawani's son was also killed in 2017 and there's speculation that Rainbow Group's Chairman Dhiren Rawani could be behind the murder, according to reports.

With PTI inputs