Election Day began on a disastrous note in LJP leader Chirag Paswan’s constituency when two CRPF jawans were killed and three others injured in an explosive blast triggered by Maoists in Jamui parliamentary seat of Bihar on Thursday morning, police said.
CRPF and Bihar Police team were travelling in two jeeps when the Maoists triggered an IED planted under the bridge they were crossing, near Sawa Lakh Baba Mandir at the entrance of Bhimbandh jungle, DSP Khargpur Ranjan Kumar told.
The two CRPF jawans succumbed to their injuries on way to a hospital while the three other injured were taken to the Sadar Hospital in Munger district, about 170 km from state capital Patna.
The incident took place at around 5:30 am, one and a half hour before the start of polling in Jamui (SC, reserved) constituency.
LJP President Ram Vilas Paswan’s son Chirag Paswan is in the fray from the Jamui parliamentary constituency against Bihar Assembly Speaker Uday Narayan Choudhary of JD (U) and Sudhanshu Shekhar Bhaskar of RJD.
Six parliamentary constituencies of Bihar, including Jamui are going to polls in the first phase of the elections in the state.
All six — Jamui, Aurangabad, Sasaram, Gaya, Nawada and Karakat are located in the Naxal-affected areas in the state.
Maoists had earlier given a call for a poll boycott.
