In a shocking turn of events in Harinagar village under Kusheshwar Asthan police station in Bihar’s Darbhanga district, all men from nearly 70 households have vanished overnight. The exodus follows a brutal clash sparked by a long-standing financial dispute, leaving women and children in a state of fear amid heavy police deployment.
The violence erupted from a 2015 row over unpaid wages for house construction. As per the complaint filed by Ashrafi Paswan, his son Vikram oversaw the building work for Hemkant Jha but was never paid the promised Rs 2.5 lakh. Tensions boiled over on January 30 when Jha’s son-in-law visited the village, reigniting demands for payment. What started as an argument escalated into a full-blown attack the next day.
Paswan alleges that a mob of around 150 people, armed with sticks and iron rods, stormed his home, assaulted family members, molested women, and looted property. An FIR has been registered against 70 named Brahmins and over 100 unidentified individuals under the SC/ST Act. With arrests looming, men from 70 homes fled, turning the village into a ghost town of anxious women.
Local women shared their plight: ‘We’ve always lived peacefully here, but now everything’s changed. Shops are shut, essentials are scarce, and fear grips us all.’ Panchayat head Vimal Chandra Khan criticized police inaction, claiming timely intervention on January 30 could have prevented the January 31 mayhem.
Darabhanga SSP Jagunath Reddy assured that no innocents would be targeted, while Biraulia DSP Prabhakar Tiwari reported 12 arrests, over 10 injuries, and ongoing probes. Heavy security blankets the area, but normal life remains paralyzed in this tense standoff.