Motihari: A teenage member of a nomadic tribe, Bittu Kumar (18), was beaten to death by his fellow tribe members near Chainpur Bazaar in East Champaran district on Wednesday. The attack followed a heated verbal exchange after which the group members, reportedly intoxicated, assaulted Bittu with bamboo sticks, killing him on the spot. Upon receiving the information, Chainpur police reached the nomads’ camp, recovered Bittu’s body and sent it for postmortem at Motihari Sadar Hospital. “The exact motive behind the murder is yet to be determined, but initial reports suggest the accused were under the influence of liquor,” a police officer said. The ‘kanjar’ tribe, a nomadic community known for their itinerant lifestyle, has been residing near Chainpur, close to the India-Nepal border, for the past year. They primarily sustain themselves by selling herbal medicines in villages across Bihar and Nepal. Their transient nature presents a challenge for law enforcement. “Since they have no permanent home and keep moving in search of food and shelter, tracking them becomes difficult,” a senior police officer said. Despite the gravity of the incident, no complaint has been lodged by any member of the ‘kanjar’ group. The tribe members remain tight-lipped about the murder. “We are examining CCTV footage from the area and have identified two people involved in the crime,” said Ashok Kumar, SDPO of Sikrahna. He added that the police have recovered a hard object stained with blood.
