Gopal Khemka, 62, a prominent businessman and a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader in Bihar, was shot dead by an unidentified man outside his home in Patna on Saturday night.
The shooting took place around 11.30 pm when Khemka was returning to his residence at the Twin Tower near the ‘Panache’ Hotel in the Ghandi Maidan area. He died on the spot, according to officials.
Superintended of Police (Patna Central) Diksha, who is also leading a Special Investigation Team formed to probe the case, told PTI that a bullet and shell casing were found at the crime scene.
CCTV footage collected from the area showed a man waiting outside the gate before a car arrived. When the car stopped outside the gate, the man hurriedly walked towards it and opened fire at Khemka who was in the driver’s seat. The attacker then turned around and fled the scene on his bike.
The motive of the murder is still being investigated.
Khemka was the owner of the Magadh Hospital and was an influential person, though he maintained a low profile. He also owned several pharmacies, a petrol pump and several factories in Hajipur.
Khemka’s brother Shankar alleged that the officers arrived at the scene only three hours after the shooting, around 2:30 am.
SP Diksha, however, said, “On the night of 4 July, around 11 PM, we received information from the Gandhi Maidan South area that businessman Gopal Khemka was shot dead. As soon as the information was received, the police reached the hospital and the crime scene.”
Khemka was taken to the hospital by his family members immediately after the shooting, but doctors declared him brought dead.
The case is eerily similar to the death of Khemka’s son six years ago. In December 2018, Gunjan Khemka, also a BJP party leader and the state convener of the party’s small industries cell, was shot dead in a similar manner. Gunjan was killed in broad daylight outside his cotton bandage factory gate and was also seated in the front seat of the car.
Interestingly, several BJP leaders had skipped attending his funeral despite him being an active member.
Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Mritiyunjay Tiwari has slammed the Bihar government over Khemka’s murder saying that the state has “descended into lawlessness” and that “Nitish Kumar is no longer fit to remain on the chief minister’s chair even for a moment.”
